Rebecca (Computer Science)

There is an unusual typographical and grammatical clue in the middle of the official name of the Brooklyn school Rebecca has attended: a colon that speaks to the school’s ambitions for its graduates. The school’s full name is High School for Public Service: Heroes of Tomorrow. Against great odds, Rebecca is already on that aspirational path. She is the valedictorian of her class, active in its theater program, including as a writer, and a member of a wrestling team that ranks eighth in the city. The teacher who wrote her recommendation noted that she was a very generous volunteer as a tutor and in other ways of contributing to the school. Rebecca was born in Haiti and came here with her family, but she and her family returned to Haiti when she was young. She returned here eight years ago, separated from her parents by the effects of a terrible hurricane, to live with an aunt. Rebecca has been very active in programs at Downstate Medical Center, experiences that have whetted both her interests in medicine and research and her ambitions. Her aunt has urged her to study to become a nurse, but Rebecca is excited to see the other options college has in store for her.