Sasha Gadalov ’25 visited villages in Alaska  to study a religious group’s assimilation to modern American culture for her Junior Fellowship.

The group, called the Old Believers, follows the traditional rituals of the Russian Orthodox Church and faced oppression from communists after the Russian Revolution of 1917. Many immigrated to Alaska to avoid persecution  and formed communities removed from mainstream society. One of Gadalov’s ancestors was an Old Believer.

Gadalov said she chose to research the Old Believer communities to  explore  her family’s past.

“I realized there was this  cool community of Old Believers in Alaska,” Gadalov said. “I thought it would be interesting to learn more about their lives and how they  have   managed to preserve it  for so  many years.”

The Old Believers adopted English while maintaining their customs. Gadalov said she concentrated on the effect of schooling on their cultural adaptation.

“I researched how education plays a role in their culture and assimilation since they’re learning everything in English through the Alaskan school system,” Gadalov said. “The [Russian language] may fade over the years because they speak English, but their traditions and customs will remain the same.”

Gadalov attended a mass while visiting the villages. She said the way the Old Believers speak in English after their traditional mass shows their ability to preserve their religious culture while adapting to American society.

“[The Old Believers] sing and do the mass in Russian, but then right after, they all speak in English,” Gadalov said. “It’s interesting to see how the community comes together for their values and traditions, [while] moving forward, because they speak in English after the service.”

Gadalov said she is thankful the school gives students the chance to research their interests.

“It was a dream come true,” Gadalov said. “I’m grateful that Harvard-Westlake has the resources to send people to their dream destinations to learn more about the stuff they’re passionate about.”

Gadalov will present her research to members of the school community this fall.