Oakley students get head start on bright futures

May 30, 2003

It is hard to believe that summer is here and that graduation for Freedom's seniors is just around the corner. Last week I had the opportunity to read through scholarship applications for over 50 of the graduating students and it was incredible to see the dedication and the spirit of so many of the students right here in our small town.

If all goes well for these seniors, we can look forward to having some new biologists, computer scientists, doctors, genetic engineers and even a few new architects.

As of her last report card, Michelle Gibson has the top grade point average of the Class of 2003 at Freedom. The opening paragraph of her scholarship application explains some of the spirit that I read in the applications.

"It is often said that you should 'always reach for the sky (for) even if you miss it, you will land among the stars.' Each person has only one life in which to live, so it's vital to set high expectations, to achieve the most out of your time upon the earth. Therefore, I try to follow my own advice and create challenging, but not unreachable goals for myself."

Michelle, who attended Oakley School, Laurel School and O'Hara Park, as well as Freedom, hopes to to study computer engineering at UC Berkeley, Cal Poly, UC Davis or UC Irvine. She worked hard in high school, not only keeping her grades high but also serving in the National Honor Society, Speech Club, as treasurer of the MESA Club and Stump Club, and in the California Scholarship Federation and Clay Club.

At home she was a member of the Sea Scouts, a maritime training program for young men and women, and a volunteer at Laurel Elementary School.

When she graduates from college she hopes to find a career involving either programming or editing computer code.

While Rachelle Aquino is ranked 13th in her class, she is equally as impressive as Michelle in her goals. She hopes to study mass communication at UC Berkeley, UC Davis or UCLA. While keeping close to a 4.0 grade point average, she has kept herself involved at school as a member of the A.L.O.H.A. Club, keeping up positions as vice president, secretary and treasurer over the years at Freedom. She also is a member of the BSU Drill Team, Latinos Unidos, the yearbook committee, and the California Scholarship Federation and the IPOU.

Outside of school she has volunteered at school car washes, the Oakley Almond Festival and her church youth groups.

In her scholarship application she wrote, "A man named John Powell once said, 'A person can only grow as much as his horizon allows.' In my case, I am reaching for something that will always be a bit out of reach. It is obvious that I've already experienced my share of education, responsibility, and awareness—however, I know that I will never fully grasp the concept of each until I've completely grown and experienced life itself. I truly hope that with more hard work, determination, and a clearer conscience, I can come even closer to each of my goals while building a better future for myself."

Leyla Sezen credits her success in school and life to her mother. She saw how her mother suffered to live through a debilitating disease and won the battle. It makes Leyla work harder to make her mother proud of her. "I guess I thought that if she had fought so hard to survive, that I better make her proud," Leyla said in her scholarship application. All of her hard work paid off, giving her high grades and helping move her closer to achieving her goal of someday being a marine biologist. Her hope is to attend CSU Monterey Bay, which is the leading school for marine biology.

Leyla says that ever since childhood she has had a passion for science and she hopes to continue to keep that passion alive.

There are so many students who have wonderful stories to tell. Oakley parents of the graduating Class of 2003 should be proud of their bright and enthusiastic children.

Roni Gehlke's column on life in Oakley appears each week in the Brentwood News.

Distributed by the Contra Costa Times

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