CHC Alumni Feature – Sean Poppen, Class of 2012
Sean Poppen (‘12) was born and raised in Chesapeake, Virginia and was welcomed to Cape Henry during his freshman year. While he was at CHC, Sean participated in all aspects of the school community. He was a Laila Serpe Distinguished Scholar, a recognition reserved for esteemed leaders and scholars within the school community, a star pitcher on the Varsity baseball team, and he also dabbled as a thespian in Upper School drama productions, taking advantage of the numerous opportunities Cape Henry has to offer.
“High school was a great time to start branching out and try new things. Learning how to manage my time helped a lot with so much going on,” Sean said. “Whenever I talk with my friends about our high school experiences, hearing their stories makes me even more grateful for my time at Cape Henry and the teachers I was able to learn from.” Recalling his senior prank, Sean said, “I wanted to replace the clock in Mr. Rodgers’s classroom with an identical one, but it didn’t work out. I think I went into his room with a couple of friends during lunch one day and we stole a ceiling tile instead. I kept the clock I bought and hung it up in my dorm room in college and now it’s in my bedroom at home, too.”
After graduating from high school in 2012, Sean studied at Harvard University and majored in both Chemistry and Physics while sharing his athletic talents with the school’s baseball team. Graduating in 2016, Sean was selected by the Minnesota Twins in Round 19 of the 2016 MLB draft and has been playing Minor League Baseball (MiLB) for the past three seasons; he rose through the ranks from “rookie ball” and is currently a pitcher for the Pensacola Blue Wahoos, a Double-A MiLB team. He said, “It all depends on how well you do in the season and whether there are spots open on the roster” and he is hoping that he will be able to join a Major League team within the next few years.
Sean married his wife Taylor in 2017 and they recently bought a house in Atlanta, Georgia where they live together during the baseball off-season. While they are in Atlanta, Sean works for Varian Medical Systems, a radiation oncology treatment and software maker. His current project is called Velocity™, which, according to the company’s website, “allows clinicians to measure changes over time, enable tumor delineation, and evaluate cancer treatments,” making it easier to provide better care. Sean truly has the best of both worlds by being able to play the sport he loves at a professional level while also having the chance to utilize his degree and work on a project that can help save lives.
From everyone at Cape Henry Collegiate, we wish Sean the best of luck in pursuing his baseball career and are so proud of his many accomplishments!
