Early College students exit high school

By SEAN BARRON

news@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

If things go as planned, Jasmine Macklin may one day work for the FBI to help solve crimes, but in the meantime, no mystery was behind her emotional state as she accomplished a major first step toward her goal.

“I’m happy, relieved – I’m just overall happy,” Macklin said shortly after she became a high-school graduate.

She was among the 61 students who took home diplomas during Youngstown Rayen Early College’s Class of 2019 commencement Friday evening at the DeYor Performing Arts Center on West Federal Street, downtown.

With diploma in hand, Macklin is eyeing the next major chapter in her life: to enroll at Youngstown State University in the fall to continue working on earning a bachelor’s degree in forensic science. From there, she hopes to transfer to a branch of the University of Central Florida as a graduate student in that field, she explained.

Beforehand, though, her travels this summer will take her considerably farther south because Macklin will be spending time in Costa Rica as part of a combined graduation and 18th-birthday gift, she said.

Aisha Williams’ travels, however, likely won’t be quite as leisurely, because she intends to land a career in fighting climate change.

“Hopefully, my plan will be to get a group of people and take trash out of the ocean, or find other ways to keep pollution out of the oceans,” explained Williams, whose ambition is to major in marine biology at Ohio State University.

If all goes accordingly, that will translate into studying marine life, such as hammerhead sharks, which can grow to 20 feet and weigh up to 1,000 pounds, as well as the effects of pollution and climate change on oceans, she explained.

Delivering the keynote address was Mayor Jamael Tito Brown, who urged the grads to realize the importance of making a lasting impact on others, regardless of what they do in life.

To that end, Brown recalled several people who left an indelible imprint on him, including the late Ned J. Kaufman, who was his 10th-grade English teacher.

Kaufman taught English 22 years in the Youngstown and Boardman school districts. Last year, his estate donated a $1.9 million scholarship gift to YSU’s Beeghly College of Education.

Brown also advised the Class of 2019 members to strive to be great leaders and seek positive people who will help them grow and realize their importance.

“In your future, you want to surround yourselves with people who will add value to your lives, not subtract from it,” the mayor said.

The Class of 2019 fulfilled 3,214 college hours and 1,281 community-service hours, noted Principal Monica Jones, who added the class had a 100 percent graduation rate. In addition, 26 of the 61 grads are to receive associate degrees during today’s Youngstown State University commencement, she continued.

Sonya Gordon, the Youngstown City Schools’ chief of secondary education, told the grads that regardless of what assumptions may be made about them, they ultimately will be judged by their humanity. She also urged their parents to push them to keep striving.

In her student reflection, salutatorian LaNae’ J. Ferguson asked her fellow grads to raise their hands if they’ve been told any of a series of common positive or negative statements she listed that typically cause anxiety or a diminished sense of control. In a somewhat edgy tone, she implored them not to make the same mistakes toward others as those who had made such statements to them.

In her remarks, Sonya L. Lenoir, class president, advised her classmates to stay motivated, persevere to reach success and realize the significance of their support network of parents, teachers and others.

Additional recognitions came from Dr. Mary Lou DiPillo, associate dean of the Beeghly College of Education; Margo Kondela, an Early College guidance counselor; and Janice E. Strasfeld, The Youngstown Foundation’s executive director.