A Wizard’s Path: Megan Bushey

For Washingtonville High School senior Megan Bushey, leadership shows up in many forms. Whether it’s center stage with her Irish dance community, on the field during softball games or through tracking her peers' community service hours with carefully managed spreadsheets.

Across classrooms, softball fields, stages and even continents, Megan’s path has been shaped by the connections she builds and the communities she uplifts.

Outside the classroom, Megan is deeply involved in school life. She’s a member of multiple honor societies, including National Honor Society (NHS), where she serves as Service Chair, Math Honor Society and National World Language Honor Society. She is a part of clubs like GEMS in STEM, where she’s vice president, Morgan’s Message and Wizards Against Cancer. Megan is also a varsity softball captain and a dedicated oboist in the high school’s Wind Ensemble.

As NHS Service Chair, Megan blends organization, responsibility and leadership. She oversees tracking community service hours for all members, managing a Google Form and a spreadsheet system that allows students to submit hours monthly while giving advisors a clear, accessible record.

“I manage the system for tracking everyone’s hours,” she explained. “People submit how many hours they have to me monthly, and then it totals them for all the months.”

Balancing that responsibility requires focus and discipline — skills Megan brings into the classroom as well. This year, she’s enrolled in a demanding schedule that includes college-level courses in statistics, biology, economics and government, alongside her leadership commitments.

Megan also values having a voice in shaping what NHS does next. This year, she’s especially excited to help launch a new initiative, Senior Citizen Bingo, planned for late April.

Another space where Megan has found both purpose and community is Irish dance. She dances with the Sheahan Gormley School of Irish Dance, and what began as a childhood activity has become a defining part of her life. Through Irish dance, Megan has traveled across the country, from Phoenix to Tennessee, Texas and the Washington, D.C. area, in addition to competing annually in Philadelphia.

But for Megan, it’s never been just about travel or competition. Irish dance has opened doors to leadership, service and connection.

“I dance at a lot of community events,” she said. “We’re often invited to perform at dinners, veterans homes, nursing homes, parades – all kinds of things. I also teach dance for about five or more hours each week.”

Megan began dancing in fifth grade and has been teaching since seventh. Today, she assists as an instructor and performance director, while also training an average of four nights a week, with practices increasing ahead of major competitions.

At performances and competitions, Megan often helps run the program alongside her friend: setting up music, organizing younger dancers, building setlists and sometimes speaking to crowds to explain the dances.

“I’ve had to speak to crowds a lot,” she said. “Both dancing and performing have taught me how to present myself confidently.”

The role also requires patience and strong communication skills, not only when teaching younger dancers, but when working with families and keeping everyone informed.

“I learned a lot of patience, social skills, interpersonal skills; teaching the younger dancers and then also communicating with their parents,” she said.

That mentorship is something Megan holds especially close. Looking back on the past four years, she’s proud of her academic success, but equally proud of the impact she’s had on the dancers she’s taught along the way.

“I’m proud of how well I do in school,” she said. “But I’m also proud of the connections I’ve made and the impact I’ve had on the younger dancers. I’ve watched them grow up, and I feel like I’ve helped them get to where they are.”

Irish dance has also deepened Megan’s connection to her heritage and expanded her worldview. Through her involvement with the Irish American Young Leaders Organization, where she recently was elected as vice president, Megan has traveled to Ireland four times. She participated in the Celtic Irish American Academy, living with a host family in Galway and learning alongside students from around the world.

“It’s an amazing experience,” she said. “You’re experiencing Irish culture, but also the cultures of the people on the trip. I’ve met students from Spain, France, Canada and Germany.”

Her memories include cultural lessons, festivals and unforgettable outdoor adventures.

“We climbed a mountain in rural Galway,” she said. “And we swam in the Irish ocean, even though it was freezing.”

As a leader in the organization, Megan is also helping support its current mission: fundraising to send children recovering from serious illnesses to a camp in Ireland.

On the field, Megan brings that same steady, team-first mindset to varsity softball. She began playing in third grade and now serves as a senior captain, focused on fostering positivity and making the most of her final season with teammates she’s grown up alongside.

“It’s a great group of girls,” she said. “I’ve loved growing up and playing with the same people. I just want us to do our best, encourage each other, keep a positive environment and have a good time.”

In the midst of her busy schedule, Megan also values having one part of the day that feels like a reset – and for her, that’s band.

“Band is a period where we can relax and have a little fun,” she said, noting the close friendships she’s built through years of playing with the Wind Ensemble.

As Megan looks ahead to graduation, she’s eager for what comes next, but also trying to slow down and appreciate the present. 

“I feel like I’m always thinking about what I’m going to do next,” she said. “So I’m trying to get the most out of the moment I’m in.”

After high school, Megan plans to study biology as an undergraduate, with a long-term goal of entering medical school and becoming an ophthalmologist. Her interest in vision care is related to her own challenges she’s had with vision issues and working with specialized doctors who introduced her to the field of vision therapy.

“It’s a really cool field,” she said. “They work on things other people haven’t done before, like training the muscles in your eyes to help with certain deficiencies.”

For Megan, that’s what a Wizard’s Path looks like: following what she loves, showing up for others and using her leadership to make a meaningful difference – wherever her path takes her next.