Emmanuel Ukudolo
The term Ivy League , according to Wikipedia has connotations of academic excellence, selectivity in admissions and social elitism
US, April 9, 2016 – Nigeria is once more in the news positively, courtesy, Augusta Uwamanzu-Nna, a 17 year student of Elmont High School in the United States of America.
The high school senior, who obtained a 101.64 weighted GPA, applied to 12 colleges, 8 of the Ivy League and was accepted by all. The eight Ivy League institutions are Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University, and Yale University.
The term Ivy League , according to Wikipedia has connotations of academic excellence, selectivity in admissions and social elitism.
“The Sewanhaka Central High School District is pleased to announce that Elmont Memorial High School valedictorian Augusta Uwamanzu-Nna has been accepted to all eight Ivy League schools”, the school said on its website.
In addition to being accepted to each Ivy League school, Augusta was also granted admission to Johns Hopkins University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, New York University and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Augusta who is excited about the development hopes to study Biochemistry but she is yet to decide which of the schools she will finally pitch her tent. But she says her choice will be based on where she will be comfortable and happy.
All eight schools are very expensive US schools, but her parents, Pricilla and Tobias are looking up to her to make the final decision.
“I am humbled by all of the college acceptance letters that I recently received. I am reminded that I have a responsibility to be a role model for others and use my experiences to encourage and inspire others, especially young women,” she said, adding that it is a dream to be accepted by one and that for all eight to accept her is quite an honour.
“Elmont Memorial is a very special place, where teachers start their days at 7 a.m. and leave very late in the evening. It is a school where teachers love children and are dedicated to academic achievement. My recent accomplishments reflect the hardworking ideals of the town of Elmont, my supportive parents and my dedicated teachers”, she said.
She told ‘Good Day New York’, a lifestyle programme on Fox 5 that she got the news during her Badminton session after receiving persistent calls from her Guidance and Counseling teacher and decided to check only to discover that all eight schools have accepted her she and started screaming at the top of her voice.
She is thinking of visiting all the eight schools the coming week to assist her in arriving at a decision. So far, no scholarship has been attached to any of the offers but she is optimistic that what scholarship offers are available elsewhere.
At 17 she is already thinking about her to impact positively on the immediate community. She said she has been carrying out a research on oil well cementing in the last three years, noting that oil well cementing can be used for offshore drilling.
“The 2010 gulf spill was caused by inadequate cement seal”, she told her interviewer. Augusta loves dancing and attributes her success to what her parents have inculcated in her all through the years.
Speaking on the programme, Tobias her father said she was thought to always remember where the family is coming from, immigrant from Nigeria.
“We explain to them where we are coming from, immigrants from Nigeria, we tell them story about our belief in education, and getting dedicated to it and getting what you want”, Tobias said.
