Sunday, June 28, 2009

exploring colleges!

Tufts. MIT. Harvard. Completely different vibes from all the schools! But my top schools are by far Tufts and Harvard. Even though we had an excellent tour guide and there are all these cute little details about the school like the 30-60-90 building and the S3(cubed) building MIT is extremely rigorous in math which is by far not my strong point. Harvard just has amazing architechture and gives off a great vibe, I can imagine myself attending there. The freshmen dinning hall which also doubled as the civil war memerial to honor the men who fought to preserve the union was breath taking! Tufts, the small campus was very welcoming even though there was virtually nobody in the campus. Talking to the students helped change my mind about Tufts. The school grew on me as the self-guided tour continued.
Having the chance to visit Brown University is amazing but also getting the chance to look at colleges around the area is even more incredible. I can't wrap my head around the idea of actually attending one of these schools in about another school year. I just want to say thank you for proving us with the opportunity to visit these three colleges.

goodnight,
Carla Ramirez

2 comments:

Charles Tillman Ramsey said...

Thanks Carla,

Our group dinner last night was lively and engaging. You expressed yourself well and I resonated with your comments about the California High School Exit Exam. Students are accountable and if they fail to pass both sections then they have a chance to take it again over summer school so that they can participate in graduation ceremonies. I agreed with your thoughtful comments and I was happy that everyone agreed that no one should walk across the stage without having passed the exam.

I loved how you illustrated that your older sister,class of 2009 Richmond High School Valadictorian, Adrianna mastered English after having immigrated here from Mexico as a third grader. Your examples were well thought out and gave all of us a vivid picture of why all of us needed to keep our eyes on the objective.

What I struggle with, not in your posts, but in our conversations is you seeing this a chance to become a stronger student and person. I know that you are working hard and want the best, and I want the best for you as well. What I need to make sure is that you remain positive in your outlook and not being despondent over circumstances beyond your control. This is a chance for all of your ILC students to use these experiences as a way to improve who they are and how they can succeed in life. We can all take the victim mentality, but it will get us little.

Former Hercules High School graduate and current MIT student Eric Trac is a phenomenial example of someone who gets it! While we were at MIT he was brutally honest about his weaknesses and his shortcomings. However, he turned those situations into positives and gave everyone the vibe that he was going to make the best out of the situation. In no instance did he portray anything other than being the best he can be.

You are also well on your way to making this happen and I want you to continue to engage in self-reflection and grow as an individual. I can see you at Tufts because it is a school that allows for spiritual development. However, you are going to have to continue to work hard and when you return from The Junior States of America program at Georgetown I hope that you will have had a chance to work harder on being college ready.

Remember, we are all pulling for you and I hope that this time with the Ivy League Connection allows you to continue to find yourself and allows you to further explore who is Carla Ramirez.

Thanks again.

Charles T. Ramsey, Esq.
School Board Member
West Contra Costa
Unified School District

Don Gosney said...

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