Invigorating the Crowd

Tomorrow officially marks the beginning of summer break for me. My school, in particular, starts early August and ends late May so that is why I end school earlier than regular high schools. That being said, I took my last final-Astronomy-at 9AM and when the clock ticked 11AM, I let out a silent scream. Done with finals! I was never so glad to be done with school and rewarding myself with tonight's ILC ceremony at the WCCUSD School Board's meeting. 

A little over 5PM my mother arrived at my school to make enough preparation time for the School Board meeting. Originally my mom was confused about the location of Lovonya DeJean Middle School, but she did her Google Search and she managed to go there by memory and a small printout of the map.Again, moms save the day and you know it! We arrived there at 5:30PM; thirty minutes before the meet-up time. Don had originally advised us to arrive earlier as parking would be limited tonight, but we found a parking space just fine. Maybe it was because we came early. Early bird specials?

Once the meeting commenced, the board members took action and started to cross things off their agenda and tabling other minor events to next meeting so they can make room for the Ivy League Connection. I can dare to say that we are all so thankful for our School Board's continuous support for the ILC and we will not let you down. There are times when the classes get challenging but when we recall all the people supporting us, we will get a boost far more useful than what a Red Bull or Monster drink can do.

Our UPenn cohort went to the front of the multipurpose room right after the Brown cohort. We walked up to the front gracefully yet energetically. Mr. Hillyer introduced us one by one and then Rudy advanced to the podium to give his speech. Rudy was very happy and amused when he stepped up to the podium and expressed his excitement! He had mentioned to the cohort before going up there that he was nervous as tonight held a large audience, but we reassured him to just speak from the heart and all would be good. I believe he expressed his thoughts genuinely and that's all it matters. 

All ILC speakers captivated the crowd by connecting with the audience through their excitement about the upcoming journey to the East Coast with their respective colleges. After all the cohorts proceeded with the introductions, we then had an ILC alum Michelle Croda to give a few words of encouragement to ILCers, future ILCers, students, and other individuals watching this live at home to never give up on your dreams and reach for anything and everything. Her speech made me realize that what you might want to do now is not what you'll might end up doing three years from now. Always, always have a Plan B ready for life. Her acceptances into Princeton, Harvard, Yale, etc was possible because ILC has opened a door for her to reach into. This truly touched me as it did to others and now I view her as my inspirational figure because what she said ignited the "pre-senior status" me as I get ready to apply to college.

My Mom (Ultimate Supporter) and I

Tonight was full of ambitious young minds trying to make a better future for themselves and I am for sure glad to be one of them.

ILCers, Parents, and Sponsors