A girl named Arianna who did something in a grande way!
By contrast to the over-crowded expressways and byways at the intersections of Anything for Something, it’s refreshing and life-affirming to see that in a world with so many of the wrongs things being rewarded, there are people still in it insisting on taking the scenic route-holding on to hope or knowing that in the bigger schematics of all the dramatics: Will, talent, and skill holds its value-(for rewards) still.
Where the overcrowded lanes of teens her age are populated and parked up and down the lanes of the Information Superhighway dreaming of a cool $3 mill, Arianna Alexander got awarded just that amount (in total) topped off by being accepted into 26 colleges (six of which were Ivy League Universities).
Having graduated valedictorian of south side Chicago’s Kenwood Academy’s class of 2015 and earning a 5.1 grade point average on a 4.0 scale, it probably goes without saying that Arianna had her pick of the soliciting coming her way.
“It was a lot to take in. I received emails, letters. It was just like, ‘Come here! Come here!’ They were bombarding me with all this information,” said Arianna.
Along with the offers, Arianna was offered scholarships having amounted such that cost of either college of her choice was never going to be an issue. (Oh what a load off the mind and back that must be for a parent facing that time to have to pay for their child’s college tuition!).
After being inspired by watching a previous student at her school get awarded $1 million dollars in scholarships, Arianna felt she could do the same, and her father Pierre Alexander planted the seed that both he and Arianna bared fruit, fruition (and tuition):
“I planted the seed in Arianna’s mind that you can do the same thing. So when the process got started and a million was achieved-let’s go for two. I said-let’s go for three and she did it,” he explained.
While it may feel good to sit around a table filled with letterhead adorned with awesome college and university logos inviting you to become one of them, the time has to come when a decision has to be made. With the help of one of her high school teachers, Paul Brush, Arianna chose University of Pennsylvania School of Business.
“He said: ‘Do you know about the Wharton School of Business?’ ”
I said: “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Fast forward.
As you can see, the 2015 Kenwood Academy high school Bronco is moving on up to bigger and better things as an incoming U. of Penn Quaker coming this fall.
Most successful business people will warn you that substantial, lasting success has a 10-year minimum incubation period. Arianna will be prepared and ready
The 18 year-old Gates Millennium Scholar recipient figured it all out and has her future plans all drawn out. Arianna says she already has the blueprint for her menus for four restaurants she plans to own and since seventh grade, has been making sure her GPA stayed at ‘A’ level which ensured this day and these rewards would happen!
Consider the digital age/social media distractions of so many of Arianna peers and age group, it’s a rare find that she remained focus like such to obtain such a reward doing (and wanting) something really real, respectable, and substantial.
Her high school’s graduating class of 371 students boasts $39.6 million (“billion” says video, million says print) in scholarship money, three of which are Gates scholars and Arianna is one of those three.
Here’s information about the Gates Millennium Scholarship + open enrollment and deadlines to apply: Good luck!
