Kae Fink graduated from Derryfield in 2011 with a great love for Nordic skiing. After Derryfield, she went on to do a post graduate year at Burke Mountain Academy, a private school that specializes in training ski racing athletes in Vermont. Fink then attended Middlebury College where she skied for the Nordic team, sang acapella, was a member of the Outdoors Club and worked for Residential Life. She graduated from Middlebury with a dual major in chemistry and environmental engineering. Her graduation date actually happened a year later than originally scheduled because Fink was given the opportunity to ski for the Sunvalley Ski Team in Idaho. She planned her classes for her last year in a way that allowed her to have one more additional season of skiing at Middlebury before she moved out west. Once Fink said goodbye to Middlebury, she started working toward her masters degree at the University of Utah. After a few short months, she was offered an internship at National Renewable Energy Lab in Boulder, Colorado. Fink and her boyfriend had always dreamed about minimizing their carbon footprint and living off the land, so they decided to launch “Operation Off the Grid,” and started building their own sustainable and self-sufficient tiny home. Their tiny home took about two years to complete and during those two years Fink was offered a full time position at National Renewable Energy Lab. She is now a chemical engineer and is developing better battery recycling methods and the next generation of batteries. Fink is still working toward her masters through a virtual program at Columbia University. She is also getting married in the summer of 2021. Kae is very excited for this next chapter!
“Derryfield helped me become me, and gave me the tools and support to follow my dreams. No matter what path I take, Derryfield gave me the confidence of knowing that I can do anything and be anything.” -Kae Fink’11