4-19-2022 4:32pm

TWINS FROM TOWSON--TO JEOPARDY,

AND THE ANSWER IS . . .CIARA AND KRISTIN DONEGAN

Beyond Baltimore County Schools: CIARA AND KRISTIN DONEGAN, TOWSON HIGH GRADUATES

Twins shine on "Jeopardy"

By TEAM BCPS

The clue is: These fraternal twin sisters, graduates of Towson High School, successfully appeared on “Jeopardy” in 2022.

And the answer is: Ciara and Kristin Donegan.

In February, Kristin, a senior at Carnegie Mellon University, earned semifinalist status in the “2022 Jeopardy National College Championship.”

In March, Ciara, a senior at University of Maryland, College Park, appeared on “Jeopardy,” ending her first day as “Jeopardy” champion. On her second day, she was in the lead when it was time for “Final Jeopardy.” When all three contestants failed to answer the final question correctly, the size of Ciara’s wager caused her to fall into second place.

Kristin and Ciara Donegan

Even if they hadn’t been so successful on the show, just to be selected as a Jeopardy contestant is a high honor. “‘Jeopardy’ has a smaller acceptance rate than some of the most prestigious colleges,” Kristin notes.

“‘Jeopardy’ has a smaller acceptance rate than some of the most prestigious colleges.” - Kristin

For the regular “Jeopardy” show, in the past year, only 400 of 150,000 applicants were chosen to appear on the show. For the college championship show, Jeopardy selected 32 students from 30,000 applicants.

The quest to become “Jeopardy” contestants began for Ciara and Kristin Donegan, 2018 Towson High graduates, while they were teens. But their interest in trivia and knowledge games is rooted in their family history. In the 1980s, their grandmother Mary Donegan auditioned to be on “Jeopardy” but wasn’t selected. Around the same time, their mother Laura Donegan was on her high school’s “It’s Academic” TV team. (“It’s Academic” is a regional academic quiz show for high school students.)

Their interest in trivia and knowledge games is rooted in their family history.

Ciara says she enjoys trivia because it offers an opportunity “to show off random knowledge I have learned throughout my life -- things that I know that I can’t use in the real world, other than in trivia games.”

Kristin says she finds it “really valuable to know a lot,” and that trivia is “extra fun” for her and Ciara “because we are good at it.”

While the sisters attended Riderwood Elementary, Dumbarton Middle, and Towson High schools together, and both play musical instruments, enjoy trivia, and served on Towson High’s “It’s Academic” TV teams, they are distinct individuals on their own paths.

The Donegan family: Ciara is on the left and Kristin is second from the right

AND THE CATEGORY IS . . . KRISTIN

Kristin began playing violin in Grade 5 and continued through Grade 12. She participated in Towson High’s color guard and marching band in Grades 10 – 12.

Kristin says that she and Ciara usually only had math together. “We were always in the gifted and talented math class of the grade ahead of us,” Kristin explains. “But there was one weird year, in Grade 11, where the school put us in all the same classes together.”

According to Kristin, one of her favorite classes in high school was Advanced Placement Biology with teacher Beth Drake. “It was just a really good class,” Kristin says. “Before senior year, I knew I wanted to pursue the sciences, but I didn’t know what kind of science. In Ms. Drake’s class, I realized that biology was the one for me.”

Going to separate universities was a big change for the twins. “During freshman year,” Kristin says, “we didn’t talk as much. I think we were busy trying to establish ourselves in our new environments. I have always been the more extroverted one; she is the quieter one. I think it was a time for us to find out who we were without the other one.”

Kristin, who is majoring in biology and minoring in history, plans to take a gap year after graduating and then attend medical school, hopefully in Maryland. During her gap year, Kristin says, “I will come home to Towson to be an emergency medical technician and do medical scribing.”

Beyond her studies at Carnegie Mellon, Kristin has been a member of the university’s marching band and is co-president of her school’s chapter of Global Medical Brigades.

Kristin on campus

“During a typical year,” she says, “our organization does fundraising and collects good to take to Central America. Once a year we go to central America and help set up clinics in rural areas.”

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kristin has only been on one Global Medical Brigades trip, and that was to Panama. “It was great,” she says. “It was jarring to see how very different health care can be around the world. We are so used to American health care. It was great to be a part of helping people who really need medical care to get these vital resources.”

With her busy schedule, participating in the “Jeopardy College Championship” was challenging to Kristin. “It was very hard to find the time to study,” she says. “During the whole second half of last semester, I spent every free moment studying. The competition was filmed the week before Thanksgiving, and I had to spend most of Thanksgiving break catching up on assignments.”

Kristin said that walking on the “Jeopardy” set took her breath away, and that, through the tournament, she made a lot of friends from different universities around the country.

Kristin said that walking on the “Jeopardy” set took her breath away, and that, through the tournament, she made a lot of friends from different universities around the country.

When it came time for the show to air, Carnegie Mellow hosted a watch party. “I was surprised by how many people came who did not know me came to the event,” Kristin says.

Kristin on the "Jeopardy" set

AND THE CATEGORY IS . . . CIARA

Outside of science, Ciara says the other constant in her life has always been music. She began piano lessons early, and in Grade 5, began playing the saxophone in school. She continued with the saxophone until she graduated.

After earning a prestigious Banneker/Key Scholarship from UMCP’s Honors College and beginning her freshman year, Ciara joined the choir of the UMD Gamer Symphony Orchestra. The performing group is the nation’s oldest college-based video game orchestra. Ciara is still a member of the choir, but she is also the orchestra’s music director.

“As the music director, I am officially in charge of maintaining the musicality of the orchestra,” Ciara says. “I give feedback on how we are sounding, and as a member of the music committee, I work with the conductors to decide what music we will play and to run auditions.”

The UMD Gamer Symphony Orchestra, fall 2021 (photo by DJR Photography)

An atmospheric and oceanic science major, Ciara says, “I don’t remember why I chose this major, but I love it.”

“I was always pretty interested in science,” she continues. “Our parents are both doctors. In high school, I decided to be a scientist. Before that I wanted to be a writer.”

Ciara remembers having some “great” science teachers at Towson High: Lindsay Karsos for biology, James Biddison for chemistry, Felicia Shrader for AP chemistry, and Holly West for environmental science.

“I really enjoyed chemistry,” she remembers. “I almost considered it as a major. But my environmental science class with Ms. West influenced me most and is closest to what I am studying now.”

Overall, Ciara says she loves being at a large research university. “I love all the opportunities here,” she says. “I know it sounds cheesy and that all the colleges say it, but I do still get a small college feel here. There are only maybe 50 people in my major, so we are a tightknit group.”

Last spring, Ciara had an internship with Maryland PIRG (Public Interest Research Group), a student-run activism group. Her work dealt with climate action on campus. Last summer

Last summer, as the recipient of an Ernest F. Hollings Undergraduate Scholarship from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, she worked remotely for NOAA monitoring acidification in estuaries in Maine.

As graduation approaches, Ciara has had one job interview already, but says she is still figuring out what’s next. She had initially planned on becoming a research scientist, but is now also thinking about science communications or education.

Ciara on the set of "Jeopardy"

About her “Jeopardy” experience, Ciara says, “I was so happy to get Ken Jennings as the host. Ken and Mayim Bialik are both great hosts, but he is the greatest ‘Jeopardy’ champion of all time. Having him standing right in front of me, and having him call me the champ, was amazing.”