Class of 2012 Graduation: METCO Address

The following is the text of Ashani Logan's METCO address at the Melrose High School Class of 2012 graduation ceremonies on Friday night.

Look at me now! When I arrived in Boston, I was a freshman in high school who spoke with a low voice and a strong Jamaican accent. My awkward appearance spelled foreigner to anyone that looked at me. My clothing was a clear contrast to the long sleeve shirts, sweaters, and snow boots all around. I felt as though I was a wandering orange who had lost its place and found itself in a basket of unfamiliar apples.

I was new to the school’s atmosphere, teenage social norms, bumpy rides on the METCO bus, and having to make new friendships. I admit with no reservations… that I was a very shy kid. Initially, I was not the most enthusiastic with this change in my life, but I made efforts towards making myself comfortable. My METCO Posse embraced me! Soon I recognized that what changed me was the METCO Program that brought me to Melrose High School.

Coming from established school systems in Jamaica, to Boston Public Schools then to Melrose High School, I have encountered different curricula, classroom settings, and interactions with diverse groups of people. Moving between different schools has allowed me to appreciate my education, goals, and experiences that I have been exposed to along the way. Here at Melrose, I owe much of my academic success to the many people who had my educational endeavors in mind. I appreciate the teachers who continuously tried and used advance technology in their lessons. I am especially grateful to the teachers who showed their belief in me and would not let me struggle with class work by encouraging me to come after school for extra help. Thanks to them, I am graduating with a 3.6 Grade Point Average on a 4.0 scale.

I have achieved significant personal and academic accomplishments throughout my three years here. For the past two summers, instead of working, I dedicated much of my time to community service. I have accumulated over 170 hours of community service from volunteering at Parkside Christian Academy and Paige Academy, as well as by being a mentor to 4th and 5th grade boys at the Mattahunt Boys Academy throughout the school year.  

Where did I find the time you ask? Well, I was determined and I received substantial help from my Upward Bound Program at Wheelock College. This is an enrichment program that offers college prep assistance for minority high school students and has also been a big part of my transition here.

During my junior and senior years, I was able to represent Melrose High School at the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards with sponsorship from the Melrose Rotary Club. I participated in the weekend leadership retreats as a junior then returned my senior year as a Facilitator.  With a strong recommendation and support from Ms. Doreen Ward, I attended LEAD, the Linking Education and Diversity program at Northeastern University, which assisted me with my college application process. Also from her support, I participated in career fairs, youth conferences, and the young men’s symposium where actor Hill Harper was the keynote speaker, and I interviewed architects and learned the basics of the trade at the 2011 conference for the National Organization of Minority Architects Students.

As many of you know, Melrose High School offers seniors a chance to do internships. Well, for the past eight weeks I had the opportunity to intern with a Ph. D. student in the Architecture Department at MIT, who is also the founder of a startup company, Meriday Animation. He advised me to pursue my studies within a range of areas along with architecture, such as structural engineering and animation.

This fall, I will be attending Syracuse University to pursue a Bachelors of Architecture degree as a Gates Millennium Scholar. I was one of 15 students selected in the state to be awarded this Scholarship. More than 24,000 students applied to the Gates Millennium Scholarship, 1,000 talented scholars are given this award. The Gates Millennium Scholars Program, funded by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, was established to provide outstanding low income under-represented students-of-color with an opportunity to successfully complete an undergraduate college education in any discipline they choose. In addition, when I pursue graduate studies in an eligible field, the Gates Millennium Scholarship will fund my master's degree and doctoral programs.

I am the first student at Melrose High School to receive this prestigious scholarship. Having this available has influenced my desire to analyze my long-term goal of becoming an architect. My family and friends were ecstatic upon my selection, especially when they found out that it was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

I would like to thank my parents, Valbert and Nadine Logan for all their love and support, my mentor Faryal Mir from the LEAD at Northeastern University and the Upward Bound Program at Wheelock College for supporting me. To Ms. Melito for believing in my artistic endeavors, and a special thanks to Ms. Doreen Ward for her continuous help, encouragement and inspiration for me to be more, do more and achieve more. I learned that my academic excellence stems from my relationships with teachers as well as, maintaining my intellectual curiosity and engagement. With that, I tried my best to strive for excellence whenever I could.

As one of the top graduating METCO seniors at Melrose High, I now recognize that I am a part of a completely different society than Jamaica. Even though I am still the young man who is an immigrant, I am no longer a stranger to America and its melting pot of diverse cultures. Ever since I became more social, I understand the steps I need to undertake in order to be comfortable, and make the best of this new world. I understand the enthusiasm one should incorporate when merging into a new culture. The journey that has led me to this realization gave me the opportunity to find my niche, and experience life in a new and exciting way.

To my METCO classmates…let’s keep in touch; and to my Melrose friends I will miss you all. Thanks everyone!