English students score scholarships

LYNN – A group of 105 Lynn English High School students will be celebrating new options for college after receiving a state college scholarship that rewards seniors for doing well on the statewide MCAS test.Guidance counselor Matthew Wilkins said this could be the school’s largest group that has been awarded the John and Abigail Adams Scholarship, which offers free tuition at any Massachusetts state school to seniors who perform well on the MCAS test.Tuitions at state colleges ranged in 2011-12 from $720 at the community colleges to $1,714 at the flagship schools, the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and Boston. The scholarships, however, do not include fees, which ranged from $3,210 to $10,020 in the latest figures available from the Mass. Department of Higher Education.Students must achieve one score of advanced and one score of proficient or advanced in math and English when they take the test as sophomores, plus earn a score among the top 25 percent in the district. In Lynn, that means competing against three other high schools.Of the 10 students receiving the scholarship who gathered in Principal Thomas Strangie’s office on Friday, seven said they were now considering attending a Massachusetts state school.”When we got the scholarship today, my friends and I started looking at Massachusetts state schools and what they had to offer,” said Stephanie Downs.She said Salem State University and Bridgewater State University both looked promising.Dakota Kim said he already planned on attending the University of Massachusetts at Boston for medical studies, but he’s counting on the free tuition since he is working to pay for college on his own.”I’ve been waiting for this for like a year,” said Kim.The students who chose not to use the scholarship said they already had their heart set on a specific school, whether it was private or out-of-state.For example, Kylian Syr is headed out of the country for McGill University in Montreal or the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. Alex Bonitto said he was hoping to go to Franklin Pierce University in New Hampshire with an athletic scholarship for a cross country or track and field team.Jake Meager said it takes a lot of the pressure off, no matter where he ends up.”It kind of gives a level of comfort,” he said. “We can still look at other colleges, but we know we can get in somewhere.”Wilkins said the increase of the scholarships is “really a credit to how hard the kids work.”In addition to MCAS prep being done in the classroom, Wilkins said teachers are volunteering to help students before and after school. Students can also take advantage of the North Shore Community College programs and participate in peer tutoring to earn a higher score on the test. Wilkins said Lynn English also holds an “MCAS rally” the day before the test to get the students “psyched up for exams.”Strangie said Superintendent Catherine Latham’s support and leadership has been key in students achieving higher scores, and he “couldn’t be more proud of the students and faculty here.”Kait Taylor can be reached at [email protected].