2007 MDC HONORS COLLEGE GRADUATES ACCEPTED TO
PRESTIGIOUS UNIVERSITIES THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY
MIAMI, June 15, 2007 – The Honors College at Miami Dade College (MDC) continues to propel its students into educational environments that promise further academic success. Students from the Class of 2007 are packing their bags and heading off with sizeable scholarships to prestigious universities throughout the country such as Yale, Stanford and Cornell.
Colombian native Susana Montes has been awarded with a fifty-thousand dollar scholarship to attend Stanford University. “I feel extremely honored and grateful for such an amazing opportunity,” said Montes. “The Honors College was my visa to Stanford. I'm not sure that I would have even considered Stanford if it weren't for the support, encouragement and preparation I received in the Honors College. When so many individuals believe in you and challenge you, you start to believe in yourself.” Montes, 22 – the first in her family to attend a college in the United States – has been living in Miami for the past two and a half years with her husband. A communications major, Montes actively pursued many extracurricular activities during her tenure at MDC including editor in chief of Metropolis, the student run newspaper of the Wolfson Campus. Montes also served briefly as host and student reporter of MDC’s public affairs program MDC in Focus.
International Relations major Paul Daniel Carvalho, 22 is heading to New Haven, Connecticut as he has received a generous scholarship to attend Yale University. “I really feel it’s an honor and privilege to go there,” says Carvalho. The student of Brazilian descent served as chapter president of the non-profit organization, ONE. The ONE Campaign is an effort by Americans to rally Americans – one by one – to fight the emergency of global AIDS and extreme poverty.
Both Montes and Carvalho traveled to New York City as a student delegates in the Model United Nations Program, as well as internationally to Salzburg, Austria to participate in the International Study Program for Honors College students.
Cornell University is another prestigious school actively recruiting Honors College students. The Ivy League college this year has offered admission to seven Honors College graduates with a scholarship award of at least forty-eight thousand dollars per year. The annual cost to attend this institution is fifty-thousand dollars. Other universities offering full tuition scholarships to graduates from the noble program are Tulane, Howard and the University of Chicago.
Yale University ranked in third place in US News’ America’s Best Colleges 2007 while Stanford University tied for fourth place. Other colleges making the list and accepting former students from the Honors College are: Harvard (ranked #1), Columbia University (tied # 9), University of Chicago (tied # 9), Cornell University, (tied # 12), Washington University in St. Louis (tied # 12), Northwestern University (ranked # 14), Johns Hopkins (ranked # 16) and Emory University (tied #18).
“Once again we are delighted that the Honors College continues to prepare students for academic success beyond our college. We are all very proud of our students’ achievements and we wish them all the best,” said MDC President Dr. Eduardo Padrón.
In 2001, the Honors College at MDC was created as a separate College within the Miami Dade College system, allowing for greater accessibility to honors classes for students throughout the Miami Dade College system and the county. In the 2006 – 2007 academic year the Honors College Dual Language Program was launched for students who have oral and written proficiency in both English and Spanish and who may be interested in pursuing careers that demand literacy in both languages.
The successful program has been lauded by the Wall Street Journal and Time magazine as a model for higher education excellence in the nation.
Media contacts: Cindy J. Irizarry (305) 237-3920; Beverly C. Rodrigues, MDC director of media relations (305) 237-3949 or Juan Mendieta, MDC director of communications (305) 237-7611.
MDC news releases are available on the web at<www.mdc.edu>.