Cameron Kilpatrick was born on April 6, 2000, to his mother April and father Roosevelt. He has lived in Rome, NY his entire life and is the youngest of three brothers. Focused on sports from a young age, Cameron was coached by his father when he began to play football and basketball, and after picking up lacrosse a few years later he continued to be a three-sport athlete throughout high school.
Cameron has always found it easy to excel academically, but just as things were getting more challenging Freshman year, his father died. Grief-stricken, Cameron was unable to focus in school, which was reflected in his freshman and sophomore year grades. Nearing the end of sophomore year, Cameron realized the academic position he had put himself in. Inspired by the success of his two brothers, Brendan and Devin—who is also a Ron Brown Scholar—and with the support of his loving mother April, Cameron was determined to make the most of the two years of high school he had left. He was successful in his endeavor and was able to get himself back on track.
The summer after turning his academic career around, Cameron attended MITES, a highly selective six-week minority enrichment program at MIT where he took college level Calculus, Physics, and Chemistry. Cameron was blown away by the students he met there, and was inspired to be surrounded by such intelligent, high-achieving minorities from across the country. It was because of MITES that he felt empowered to push his limits by applying to the top colleges in the United States.
Cameron wants to be an Engineer. What type? He doesn’t know. Cameron’s father was a “fixer”—whenever there was a problem around the house he’d find his own solution rather than paying someone else to fix it. From being his father’s assistant and accompanying him on countless projects, Cameron discovered that he had a knack for how things work, and he enjoys the challenge of trying to fix things he’s unfamiliar with. His experiences at home, along with his school coursework and time at MITES have all contributed to his passion for engineering.
Cameron’s interests outside of engineering include politics and social justice. He closely followed the last presidential election, and was appalled by Donald Trump’s comments on women, Muslims, and just about every ethnic group. The fact that someone so divisive and (in his view) bigoted could be the president showed him how far America is from being truly equal, and he hopes to be part of the generation that ends inequality. Cameron has taken every opportunity to learn more about government, including being a Rome City Common Council Youth Advisor as well as Rome’s delegate to the Students Inside Albany Conference. Cameron plans to minor in political science and will stay involved in politics on campus in any way he can. Cameron believes one of the greatest ways to make change is through government, and he hopes to eventually run for office.
Cameron hopes to use his education in Engineering and political science to make a difference in his community and his country. He believes the only way is forward, and he is excited to join the Ron Brown community as an engineer for humanity.
