YOUNGSTOWN SCHOOLS Six join Young Scholars Program

Program participants are asked to make a 10-year commitment to education.
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- The Youngstown city schools and Ohio State University have inducted a new class of pupils for the Young Scholars Program.
Six children who will enter the seventh grade this fall have made a long-term commitment to education that could see them finish high school and go on to college at OSU or another institution of higher learning.
The Young Scholars Program, created in 1988 by OSU's Office of Minority Affairs, is a pre-collegiate and collegiate program designed to enhance the academic, personal and career development of targeted young people.
It's aimed at low-income, inner-city children from the nine largest urban school districts in the state, including Youngstown.
Each spring, teachers, principals and guidance counselors from those schools nominate sixth-graders for the program as Pre-Young Scholars.
Those nominees are then interviewed and selected for participation based on academic performance, leadership, community involvement and other factors. School officials, OSU representatives and community representatives make the final selections.
Formal program inductions occur in the ninth grade, and only first-generation college-bound young people are accepted.
Induction ceremonies
The Youngstown Board of Education held induction ceremonies this month for the 13 city schoolchildren inducted as Pre-Young Scholars the Class of 2006, at the same time recognizing eight graduating high school seniors who are members of the Young Scholars Class of 2000.
"The gift you are being given today is a gift that will give to you the rest of your lives," Dr. Wendy Webb, city school superintendent, told the inductees, urging them to excel in their educational pursuits and their lives.
Only 120 Pre-Young Scholars are selected statewide each year.
They and their families are making a commitment of at least 10 years, said Robert Decatur, interim director of the Young Scholars Program for YSU.
Participants in grades 10 through 12 get to attend a two-week residential summer academy at OSU's Columbus campus. Those in grades seven through nine participate in a one-week academy in their home district.
The Young Scholars are also provided with various assistance to ensure academic success, including workshops, tutoring and career exploration.
Students who complete the program are encouraged to enroll at OSU after high school graduation, with admission guaranteed and a financial aid package based on their individual need.
Newest class and graduates
The Youngstown Class of 2006 Pre-Young Scholars and their schools are: D'Treal Bennett (Kirkmere), Emmett Conner (Southside Upper), Darius Hargrove (Cleveland), Brittney Ingram (Southside Upper), Asia Lee (Southside Upper), DaVante' Marrow (Sheridan), Joel Montaz (East Middle), Altoya Parnell (Kirkmere), Leon Robinson (Kirkmere), Jeremy Rosado (East Middle), Angelica Tenney (Sheridan), Moneta Ward (Sheridan) and Tuerei Williams (Kirkmere).
The Class of 2000 graduating seniors, with a grade-point average ranging from 3.5 to 3.9, are: Michael Cathey (Chaney), Michaela Caventer (Chaney), Daniel Ferguson (Wilson), Cornelius Hubbard Jr. (Chaney), Jalise Humphrey (Rayen), Robbin Ivory (Warren Harding), Sakinah Noble (Rayen) and Erinn Parnell (Chaney).
All eight said they plan to pursue a post-high school education, most of them at OSU.
gwin@vindy.com