Posses round up college cash for Lynn students

LYNN ? When this year’s Posse Foundation Scholarships were announced, Lynn Classical and Lynn English were thrilled to have mini-posses right in their buildings.At Classical, Kristen Ago, Paola Salas, Yeidaly Mejia and Justin Guzman have received the full-tuition grant for four years of college that has an estimated value of at least $140,000.Salas and Mejia will attend Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania, Guzman will go to Bucknell University in Pennsylvania and Ago will be attending Denison University in Ohio.Like so many high school students, the recipients wanted to attend college next year, but feared the financial strain of tuition, room and board would hold them back. The Posse Scholarship alleviates those fears.”The reality of it all is hard to grasp.” Salas said. “Seeing my sister go through getting the scholarship, and knowing that I will have a support system with Posse and they will help me graduate makes me extremely grateful.””Paola advocated for herself strongly through this entire process,” said Classical guidance counselor Donna Doucette.Ago, Mejia, and Salas plan to study STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), while Guzman will concentrate on business.”This is a chance,” Mejia said. “I am a first-generation college student, and I am going to my university in the STEM Posse division, and will be majoring in biology. I have a support system.”There were numerous obstacles the four faced and shared in their essays when applying for the scholarship, and Guzman touched on some of them.”The biggest obstacles? Everything (that was) going on around me,” he said. “Situations with my family, money issues, managing time ? I just feel like it goes unrecognized what high school students have to go through.”Finances, single-family homes, schoolwork and social life are common threads the students discussed.”This scholarship is a breath of fresh air,” Mejia said.At English, Victor Bene, Mariani German and Victoria Grandel received the Posse grants. With the rising cost of college tuition and the increase of student debt, the scholarship will relieve a financial burden, the students said.All three students will head to New York for college, as Bene and German will attend Hamilton College, while Grandel will go to Union College.”Getting this scholarship means a lot to me,” German said. “My mother and I do not have enough money to pay for college. Getting the Posse Scholarship makes me able to further my education.”The three students have similar family backgrounds ? low-income, single-family households ? which they said motivated them to do well in school and attend college.”This is a summation of the experiences and people in our lives. I am going to take what I learned here at Lynn English High School and bring it to another setting,” Bene said.”A big obstacle for me is money,” Grandel said. “It is very hard sometimes figuring out where I am going to get my next bus fare, how I am going to pay for field trips, and having to come up with money for bills.”The students are all very involved in extracurricular activities and after-school programs, such as Girls Inc and the La Vida Scholars program, which helps students and parents with the college application process.”The best advice I can give is carve your own path through high school, talk to your teachers,” Grandel said. “Education, for me, personally, is the one thing that would take you everywhere you need to go.”Founded in 1989, the Posse Foundation identifies public high school students with extraordinary academic and leadership potential who may be overlooked by traditional college-selection processes, according to its website. Posse gives the students the opportunity to pursue personal and academic excellence by placing them in supportive, multicultural teams ? Posses ? of 10 students. Posse partner colleges and universities award Posse Scholars four-year, full-tuition leadership scholarships.