Congratulations to the following Gateway students who have earned recognition for their academic achievements in the second term of this school year:
Amazing Aces (highest course grades):
Kerlie Merizier (English Language Arts), Iryelis Lopez (Chemistry Honors, Mrs. Drurey), Samuel Martin (Chemistry Honors, Ms. Potwin), Mary-Jo Raei (Advanced Algebra), Christian Peguero (Advanced Algebra Honors), Cuong Linh (History), Jean Charles (AP English Language and Composition), Pascal Delpe-Brice (AP Computer Science A), Xiomara Garcia (AP Biology), Michael Mejia (AP Microeconomics and Physics Honors), Kevron Robertson (Spanish 3 Honors), Josie Valcin (AP French)
Busy Beavers (highest homework average across four core courses):
Kerlie Merizier, Patricia Rosa
Courageous Climbers (most improved performances in individual courses):
Terence Coston (Advanced Algebra Honors), Guy Francois (English Language Arts), Kerlie Merizier (History), Queenie Rigaud (Advanced Algebra), Feysal Said (Chemistry Honors with Ms. Potwin), Paul Thaing (Chemistry Honors with Mrs. Drurey)
P.R.I.D.E. of Gateway Awards:
Zenubia Cameron, Cuong Linh, Iryelis Lopez, Biruk Sirmollo
Cum Laude (3.00—3.49 GPA)
Bianca Bertrand, Shacoya Fisher, Kamela Hysa, Melissa Jean, Judy Le, Iryelis Lopez, Johnny Mejia, Andreina Nieves, Kristen O’Brien, Christian Peguero, Mary-Jo Raei, Queenie Rigaud, Jemmie Tejeda, Paul Thaing, Pascal Delpe-Brice, Xiomara Garcia, Ayana Green, Anamol Gurung, Cassandra Leveille, Christina Nguyen, Kevron Robertson, Yaritza Sanchez, Rosa Soto, Victoria Tanis, Josie Valcin, Jeremy Wong, Katherine Brea, Marleah Cummins, Pierline Durand, Annie Moy, Juleissy Pimentel, Claribel Rosa, Brendon Tan, Marquette Webster
Magna Cum Laude (3.50–3.89)
Cuong Linh, Kerlie Merizier, Samantha Michel, Patricia Rosa, Michael Mejia, Kishma Andrew, Christelle Salomon, Tiffany Wu
Summa Cum Laude (3.90-4.00)
Genesis Pena
Following our Honors Assembly, several of our juniors and seniors hosted an informal "AP Powwow" to share their junior AP experiences with our current class of rising juniors, the Gateway Class of 2013. Many thanks to Jeremy, Xiomara, Josie, Annie, Cassandra, Tan, Frankline, Michael, Bianca, Genesis, Marleah, Sayyida, Jean, Yaritza, and Pierline for showing our sophomores your O'Bryant AP pride and spirit!
Gateway Term 2 Honors Assembly + AP Powwow!
Gateway/BU HPREP welcomes Dean Kaplan!
Today, our HPREP student organization supported by the SNMA chapter of the BU School of Medicine was honored to host Dr. Samantha Kaplan, Assistant Dean for Diversity and Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at BUSM.
Dr. Kaplan shared with our students her experiences from college through medical school to her current work and lifestyle as an academic leader, clinician and working mother. We are very grateful for the time and excellent advice she shared with all of us!
Trip to Tufts University 12/8
On Wednesday, 33 Gateway sophomores and juniors were hosted by the admissions office of Tufts University in Medford, MA. Upon our arrival, our group engaged in a college admissions discussion with Mr. Walker Coppedge, the Tufts admissions officer in charge of the Boston region. Two Tufts undergraduate students then led us on a brisk tour of some of the main campus buildings, before leading us to our free dinner in one of Tufts' undergraduate dining halls.
Despite the seasonably low temperatures, we enjoyed a very warm welcome by Tufts University. Thanks to Ms. Style and Mr. Coppedge for arranging this special opportunity for our students!
Visit from Dr. Woodson
On Saturday, May 1, we had a great turnout of Gateway students from all three classes to meet with Dr. Jonathan Woodson of the Boston University School of Medicine. Dr. Woodson is an Associate Professor of Surgery and Associate Dean for Diversity and Multicultural Affairs at BUSM. He has recently been nominated by President Obama to assume the post of Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, which oversees the entire U.S. military health system.
Dr. Woodson shared with us some valuable nuggets of advice about choosing careers, seeking help from multiple mentors in different areas of life, and always keeping an open mind about what possibilities might lie around the corner.
Following Dr. Woodson's visit, his BUSM students Laura, Sasha and Osa gave our students some hands-on experience in taking blood pressure readings. Fortunately, our students were found to have excellent, healthy blood pressures!
We owe tremendous thanks to Dr. Woodson, Laura, Sasha and Osa for taking time to be with us on a very busy day at the BU School of Medicine. All students are welcome back on Saturday, May 15 for the final meeting of our Gateway/BU HPREP program for the year!
Upcoming Medical/Biomedical Student Opportunities
As I recently emailed to all Gateway students and parents, there are some exciting opportunities coming up soon for students who are interested in exploring medicine and/or biomedical science:
Gateway summer hospital placements: As in past years, our Gateway program will have access to a limited number of summer hospital job placements for current ninth and tenth grade students. All G9 and G10 students will receive informational packets in their homerooms this Tuesday, March 16. Students must nominate themselves for consideration by returning the parent/student signature form to Ms. Style by Friday, March 19.
Current juniors have the opportunity to pursue all of the same summer job programs - at Dana-Farber, Beth Israel Deaconess, Children's Hospital, and Brigham and Women's Hospital - through our school's Private Industry Council program organized by Ms. Terry Alleyne.
Gateway/BUSM HPREP: Our HPREP program (Health Professions Recruitment and Exposure Program) returns this Saturday, March 20 with a visit from Boston University School of Medicine psychiatry professor Dr. Doug Hughes. All Gateway students are invited to join the spring series of our pre-medical club!
Free biomedical/pediatrics program at MIT: All Gateway students who enjoy biology or who are interested in pediatrics should consider signing up for the April vacation program at MIT's renowned Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research. The theme of this year's program is "The ABC's of Childhood Disease." Registration is first-come, first-served, and the application may be downloaded from this website.
2/2 Pre-Med Meeting at BU
Calling all Gateway pre-med students:
Thanks to the efforts of Gateway sophomore Meghan Comeau, Gateway students who are interested in medicine have been invited to meet with Dean Glen Zamansky, Assistant Dean of Premedical Studies at Boston University. Dean Zamansky's title indicates that he is the person at BU who oversees all advising of students who would like to apply to medical school after college.
This meeting will take place on Tuesday, February 2 at 4:30 PM at Boston University. [Please read your email for information about the specific meeting location.] We estimate that this meeting will run until approximately 6:00 PM.
Gateway students who are interested in participating in this meeting are responsible for their own transportation to and from the meeting. Parents are very welcome to attend as well. Although we are not able to provide transportation nor chaperoning to and from this meeting, Ms. Style will be attending this meeting to support participating Gateway students.
For all students who think that they might be interested in pursuing a career in medicine or another health profession in the future, we strongly encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity to learn about how to prepare yourself for this path in college.
Students or parents who have any questions about this meeting may contact me prior to Tuesday.
1/14 G10 College Panel
On January 14, our sophomore class attended a panel discussion featuring six successful college students with ties to our O'Bryant Gateway program. On this occasion, we welcomed back with great pride two recent alumni of the O'Bryant School, Olaniyi Ogunbodede (Class of 2008) and Massiel De los Santos (Class of 2009). They were joined by Tonia Smith, an alumna of the Clara Barton Gateway program in Brooklyn who currently attends Wellesley College; Janice Mathew, an MIT senior who tutors in our program; and Dennis Guadarrama and Javier Rios, both senior undergraduate students in BU's Early Medical School Selection Program, whose students have volunteered in our program for the past three years.
After listening to our panelists describe their strategies for academic success, our students had the opportunity to ask our college volunteers more general questions about college life, in small-group discussions that were organized by gender.
Many thanks to our amazing panelists, our student facilitator Christelle Salomon, and our video production crew of Manny Rios Alers, Anthony Antonelli and Andrew Sepulveda, for helping put together this great event for our sophomore class.
Gateway Honors, Term 2
Congratulations to the following Gateway students who have earned recognition for their academic achievements in the second term of this school year:
Amazing Aces (highest course grades):
Amy Chen (ELA 10 and Chemistry Honors), Sara Cifuentes (Advanced Algebra), Jie Hao Liang (Advanced Algebra Honors), Cuong Linh (ELA 9), Iryelis Lopez (Biology and History 9), Kerlie Merizier (Geometry), Josie Valcin (History 10)
Busy Beavers (highest homework average across four core courses):
Bianca Bertrand, Amy Chen, Judy Le, Melissa Lopes, Genesis Pena, Victoria Tanis, Jemmie Tejeda, Josie Valcin, Rachael White
P.R.I.D.E. of Gateway Awards (“Golden Duckies”):
Kwaku Afari, Melissa Lopes, Iryelis Lopez, Tan Nguyen, Victoria Tanis, Jemmie Tejeda, Rachael White, Jeremy Wong
Cum Laude (3.00—3.49 GPA)
Kwaku Afari, Barry Bhagwandeen, Alfredo Brea, Bianca Brito, Zenubia Cameron, Terence Coston, Candice Gonzales, Ayana Green, Kamela Hysa, Melissa Jean, Sayyida Jean-Charles, Judy Le, Melissa Lopes, Samuel Martin, Johnny Mejia, Michael Mejia, Samantha Michel, Kristen O’Brien, Deidra Oruma, Jelissa Pimentel, Cristian Polanco, Mary Jo Raei, Queenie Rigaud, Yaritza Sanchez, Biruk Sirmollo, Lomorng Thaing, Jeremy Wong
Magna Cum Laude (3.50–3.89)
Bianca Bertrand, Amy Chen, Meghan Comeau, Xiomara Garcia, Jie Hao Liang, Cuong Linh, Iryelis Lopez, Frankline Mardi, Kerlie Merizier, Christina Nguyen, Christian Peguero, Genesis Pena, Patricia Rosa, Jemmie Tejeda, Josie Valcin
Thanks to all Gateway 9 and 10 students, families and staff for helping celebrate these accomplishments of your classmates at our recent Gateway Academic Night!
Gateway Honors, Term 1
Congratulations to the following Gateway students who have earned recognition for their academic achievements in the first term of this school year:
Amazing Aces (highest course grades):
Meghan Comeau (Advanced Algebra Honors), Candice Gonzales (Biology), Judy Le (Geometry), Jie Hao Liang (ELA 10),
Cuong Linh (ELA 9), Christina Nguyen (Chemistry Honors and History 10), Lorenzo Perez (Advanced Algebra), Jemmie Tejeda (History 9)
Busy Beavers (highest homework average across four core courses):
Amy Chen, Meghan Comeau, Judy Le, Cuong Linh, Samantha Michel, Christina Nguyen, Kristen O’Brien, Patricia Rosa, Jemmie Tejeda, Josie Valcin
P.R.I.D.E. of Gateway Awards (“Golden Duckies”):
Agostinha Depina, Guy Francois, Melissa Jean, Sayyida Jean-Charles, Patrick Joseph, Jie Hao Liang, Queenie Rigaud, Jordan Young
Cum Laude (3.00—3.49 GPA)
Kwaku Afari, Michael Allen, Bianca Bertrand, Barry Bhagwandeen, Alfredo Brea, Katherine Brea, Bianca Brito, Xiomara Garcia, Candice Gonzales, Ayana Green, Kamela Hysa, Melissa Jean, Sayyida Jean-Charles, Julia Li, Jie Hao Liang, Iryelis Lopez, Frankline Mardi, Michael Mejia, Kerlie Merizier, Samantha Michel, Thalia Montalvo, Kristen O’Brien, John Paul, Genesis Pena, Lorenzo Perez, Manny Rios Alers, Patricia Rosa, Yaritza Sanchez, Suzette Schand, Jemmie Tejeda, Lomorng Thaing, Jeremy Wong, Tiffany Wu
Magna Cum Laude (3.50–3.89)
Amy Chen, Meghan Comeau, Judy Le, Cuong Linh, Christina Nguyen, Christian Peguero, Josie Valcin
Thanks to all Gateway students and staff for helping celebrate these accomplishments of your classmates!
Immediately after our awards ceremony in Roland Hayes and post-ceremony pizza party, our teachers and students went right back to work with a Grade 9 binder cleanup party, a Grade 10 girls' group closing celebration (RAWR), and a Grade 11 time management workshop. No rest for the weary ;)
Scenes from BU/Gateway HPREP
After two months with no postings (sorry!), the Gateway blog is back in action, with updates on some of the activities that have been keeping us very busy.
In collaboration with the BU School of Medicine's SNMA chapter, we launched a BU-Gateway HPREP program earlier this fall. This new activity has attracted over 25 committed participants to bimonthly sessions that have included a trip to the BUSM anatomy lab and a group outing to the AAMC Minority Career Fair.
Who is this mystery Gateway student shrouded in surgical garb?
Colby College Admissions Event @ HMS
Calling all science-loving Gateway students, especially from the Class of 2011! Colby College in Waterville, ME will be hosting an admissions information session at Harvard Medical School this Wednesday, September 23, starting at 3:30 PM in room Tosteson 250.
Colby is actively promoting CAPS (Colby Achievement Program in the Sciences), a new initiative to support underrepresented minority students (including first-generation college students of any ethnicity) who major in science at Colby.
Colby College also happens to be the alma mater of our own Ms. Style!
Ms. Style and Dr. Wu will be attending this event, and we hope to see a great turnout from Gateway students in all three classes!
4/16 MassArt Trip
Last Thursday, our Grade 9 math enrichment class visited the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, to experience the math-themed student exhibit entitled "Means of Accumulation."
The MassArt students who developed this exhibit led our students through a series of activities to directly engage them with the works of art and the artmaking process. When we return to school, our students will tackle new projects of their own that respond directly to the ideas expressed in the MassArt exhibit. We will find some time and place soon to showcase the artwork created by our own students!
Thanks to Professor Sandy Weisman and Ali Nebel of MassArt, Lisa Lang of Northeastern, and all of the MassArt students who have contributed their time and energy to supporting our afterschool math/art explorations this spring!
Gateway Honors, Term 3
Congratulations to the following Gateway students who have earned recognition for their academic achievements in the third term of this school year:
Amazing Aces (highest course grades):
Alfredo Brea (Geometry), Katherine Brea (Advanced Algebra Honors and Chemistry Honors), Yaritza Fajardo (Advanced Algebra), Ayana Green (ELA 9), Christelle Salomon (ELA 10 and History 10), Josie Valcin (Biology, History 9)
Busy Beavers (highest homework average across four core courses):
Frankline Mardi, Michael Mejia, Annie Moy, Genesis Pena, Wadea Sakhta, Tai Tang, Tamara Tarshahani
Freshman Students Who Made a Splash (“Golden Duckies”):
Meghan Comeau, Pascal Delpebrice, Michael Mejia, Yaritza Sanchez
Cum Laude (3.00—3.49 GPA)
Michael Allen, Kayla Baquerizo, Alfredo Brea, Bianca Brito, Vicmarys Brito, Meghan Comeau, Marleah Cummins, Pavel Dzemianok, Salma El-Behaedi, Xiomara Garcia, Ayana Green, Anamol Gurung, Danielle John, Cassandra Leveille, Julia Li, Frankline Mardi, Michael Mejia, Christina Nguyen, Sindy Ortiz, Genesis Pena, Juleissy Pimentel, Gjergji Prifti, Wadea Sakhta, Yaritza Sanchez, Brendon Tan, Victoria Tanis, Adrienne Thornton, Justin Weathers, Tiffany Wu
Magna Cum Laude (3.50–3.89)
Katherine Brea, Annie Moy, Claribel Rosa, Fatima Salmi, Christelle Salomon, Josie Valcin
Thanks to all Gateway students for helping celebrate these accomplishments of your classmates!
3/26 Special Visit from BUSM "Early Admissions" Med Students
Attention all Gateway students who have ever thought about medical school!!!
On Thursday March 26 from 5-6 PM, prior to our all-Gateway family meeting, we will be hosting a special visit from five members of Boston University School of Medicine's Early Medical School Selection Program (EMSSM). These are students who have earned early admission to BUSM after their sophomore years of undergraduate study at historically black colleges and universities. Students in this program spend their senior undergraduate years at Boston University, making an early transition into medical school.
Come learn about the kind of personal commitment to excellence that is required to make it all the way to medical school. Some of the students in EMSSM also participated in Gateway-like programs in high school, and they may have interesting perspectives to share with you about "life after Gateway."
Whitehead Institute High School Biology Program
If you have enjoyed previous field trips to the Broad Institute, we encourage you to sign up for the Whitehead Institute of MIT's High School Student Program, which occurs every year during the April school vacation. The Whitehead Institute is one of the world's leading biomedical research centers, and it is right next door to the Broad Institute. Registration is open now for this year's program, and it is first-come first-served.
Back to the Broad Institute and MIT Museum (3/13)
Yesterday, the Gateway ninth-grade class enjoyed a field trip to the MIT Museum and the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT. At the MIT Museum, we learned about protein synthesis in the Legos-based learning lab designed by Dr. Kathy Vandiver from MIT, who led us through this activity along with her colleague Jon Bijur. At the Broad Institute, we learned how to conduct DNA fingerprinting using the technique of gel electrophoresis.
Many thanks to Dr. Vandiver, Jon Bijur, Dr. Megan Rokop and Kate MacSwain for organizing such a wonderful experience for our students!
Pride of the O'Bryant
We are incredibly proud of our school community's participation in tonight's Boston School Committee budget hearing at English High School. Thank you to all O'Bryant students, parents and staff who came out to support our school. Our "roaring" O'Bryant welcome to Superintendent Carol Johnson truly showed the heart of our school.
Spring Programs at MIT
As of 8:00 PM tonight (February 17), registration is now open for MIT's two spring enrichment programs for Boston-area middle and high school students.
The Spark program is a one-day extravaganza of workshops on a diverse array of topics, often very kooky ones. This year's Spark program will be held at MIT on Saturday, March 7, from 9:00 AM to 10:00 PM. Past Spark offerings have included "Swing Dancing," "How to Survive a Zombie Attack," "Snap, Crackle, BOOM! A Fiery Introduction to Chemistry," and "Things from Australia that Can Kill You."
The HSSP program is a semester-long program of weekend classes. The Spring 2009 HSSP program will run from Saturday, March 14 to Saturday, May 2. Classes are between 1.5 and 2 hours long and run for 8 to 10 weeks. Past HSSP classes have included "Politically Inclined Math," "The Chinese Artistic Experience," and "Advanced Computer Game Hacking."
For more information and to register, please visit the home page of MIT's Educational Studies Program and look for "Spark/HSSP Registration." If you choose to register for one or both of these programs, please make sure to fill out the online financial aid form, as these programs should be free to all O'Bryant students due to our school's participation in the free lunch program.
More Upcoming Medical/Science Explorations
Congratulations to our five Gateway freshmen students - B. Brito, S. Hussein, D. John, O. Oyedeji, and J. Valcin - who represented our program admirably at today's Job Shadow Day at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
For students who were not able to participate in this event, please stay tuned for the next opportunity to visit Dana-Farber. Our Dana-Farber contacts currently are working to confirm an afterschool field trip opportunity for Gateway students to visit their Department of Radiology.
This coming week, we have a Friday afterschool opportunity for students to visit the Harvard Medical School/Partners Healthcare Center for Genetics and Genomics. Permission slips will be distributed in all Gateway science classes early next week, and I also will email the permission form to all Gateway parents with email addresses. We may need to pick out of a hat for this one, as limited spaces are available.
Upcoming Medical/Science Explorations - Grade 9
As I will announce in tomorrow's Biology classes, a number of opportunities are now available for Gateway ninth-graders to explore their interests in medicine and biomedical science.
First, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute has invited us to send a small number of ninth-grade students to participate in their Job Shadow Day on January 30. Applications will be distributed to interested students tomorrow, and they will be due back to Dr. Wu by the end of Friday, January 23.
Secondly, we will be nominating students to participate in Harvard Medical School's Mentoring for Science 9 program, which meets afterschool on Wednesdays during the spring. Students will be asked to express their interest in this program during Biology class tomorrow, and applications will be due to HMS on Tuesday, January 27.
Finally, all ninth-grade students are invited to enter Harvard Medical School's Reflection in Action contest, in which students explore medical/health themes through original artistic works. Students who submit winning entries will be invited to participate in a daylong symposium at Harvard Medical School in April. Interested students are invited to meet with Dr. Wu tomorrow afterschool, in Mrs. Shields' room.
