More than 1,000 Adams Scholars from BPS earn free tuition to state colleges

BOSTON – More than 1,000 members of the Class of 2009 from Boston Public Schools are eligible for free tuition at any public college in Massachusetts based on their performance on the MCAS exams. The students all qualified for the John and Abigail Adams Scholarship, sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and Board of Higher Education.

A total of 1,054 Boston Public Schools (BPS) students in the Class of 2009, nearly one in four seniors this year, earned the scholarships. The number of BPS students qualifying has increased steadily since the awards were first given in 2005 when the number was 724.

“In order to succeed in career and life, our students must continue their education beyond high school,” said Superintendent Carol R. Johnson. “The Adams Scholarships help ensure that the cost of tuition does not stand in the way of our students achieving the dream of higher education. We are proud that so many students will have the opportunity to continue their learning here in Massachusetts.”

To qualify for the scholarship, students had to score in the Advanced category (Level 4) on either the English Language Arts or Math sections of the MCAS exams and Proficient or Advanced (Level 3 or 4) on the other. Also, the students’ scores had to rank in the top 25% of the district.

Mayor Thomas M. Menino said, “These students have proven that hard work and determination can open the doors to an affordable college education. The MCAS is one of the most challenging state tests in the country, and once again, our students have shown that they have the knowledge and skills to perform extremely well.”

Dr. Johnson noted that several Boston high schools demonstrated significant gains in the number of students earning Adams Scholarships, such as Charlestown High School, where 54 students qualified, compared to 33 students last year, an increase of more than 63 percent.

Boston students who qualified for the scholarship are enrolled at 33 different Boston public high schools, including district, pilot, exam and alternative schools.

“We are very pleased to see an increase in the number of students who are achieving at the highest levels of performance in high schools throughout the district,” said Dr. Elizabeth Reilinger, Chairperson of the Boston School Committee. “The scholarship recipients represent the diversity of our graduates and demonstrate that the Boston Public Schools are educating students to be ready for post-secondary success.”

Adams Scholarship recipients receive free tuition at any Massachusetts public college or university. The tuition waiver remains in effect for eight consecutive semesters or four years. Recipients must begin to use the waiver in the first fall semester following their high school graduation, and must maintain a grade point average of 3.0 or better.

The number of qualified students from each school is listed below, by neighborhood:

Back Bay: Snowden International (10)

Brighton: Another Course to College (17), Boston Community Leadership Academy (13), Brighton (31)

Charlestown: Charlestown (54)

Chinatown / South End: Quincy Upper (6)

Dorchester: Academy of Public Service (1), Burke (5), Boston Latin Academy (212), Noonan Business Academy (3), TechBoston Academy (26)

East Boston: East Boston (36)

Fenway: Boston Arts Academy (19), Boston Latin School (375), Fenway (15), Health Careers Academy (12), McKinley (1)

Hyde Park: Community Academy of Science and Health (4), The Engineering School (3), Social Justice Academy (2)

Jamaica Plain: Boston International (2), English (8)

Roxbury: Boston Day and Evening Academy (1), Community Academy (1), Madison Park (3), O’Bryant (150), New Mission (3)

South Boston: Excel (16), Monument (3), Odyssey (4)

West Roxbury: Brook Farm Business and Service Career Academy (3), Media Communications Technology (8), Parkway Academy of Technology and Health (4), Urban Science Academy (2)

For more information about the scholarship program, visit http://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/adams.html.