High school class of 2011 to share millions in scholarship aid

Students in the local high school class of 2011 are on their way to accepting more than $20 million in scholarship aid.

According to a Springfield Public Schools news release, of the nearly 1,600 graduates at the city’s public high schools, students already have accepted more than $15 million in scholarship funds. Additionally, seniors who participated in the A+ Program have been offered $4.1 million in grants, but because students have four years, not all of those funds have been accepted and are not included in the district’s totals, the release said.

A separate news release from Springfield Catholic High School said the Class of 2011 has been offered more than $5.6 million in scholarships.

By school, here are snapshots of academic achievement.

• Central High School had a graduating class of 323 seniors, with three valedictorians who had grade-point averages of 5.0. There were 81 International Baccalaureate Diploma candidates at Central; 78 received the President’s Award for Educational Excellence. Central had 52 seniors who qualified for Bright Flight Scholarships by scoring in the top 3 percent statewide on the ACT or SAT tests. Of the seniors, 65 are members of the National Honor Society, and 118 students were eligible for A+ incentive grants. and more than $5.1 million in total scholarships – not including A+ funds – have been accepted.

• Glendale High School awarded diplomas to 328 seniors, with four valedictorians. Eleven seniors qualified for Bright Flight Scholarships, and 108 students are eligible for A+ funds.  Glendale’s graduating class had 79 students who received the President’s Award for Educational Excellence; 49 received honors diplomas for graduating in the top 15 percent of their class; and 64 seniors were members of National Honor Society. Glendale’s Class of 2011 has accepted more than $3.3 million scholarships.

• Hillcrest High School had 223 graduating seniors, one valedictorian and one salutatorian. Hillcrest had one student who qualified for the Bright Flight scholarship program; 53 students eligible for A+ incentive grants; and 11 seniors who received the President’s Award for Educational Excellence. Hillcrest also had 36 seniors who received honors diplomas, 26 who received college preparatory certificates and 34 who were members of National Honor Society. Hillcrest seniors have accepted more than $1.1 million in scholarships.

• Kickapoo High School had 386 graduates, including nine valedictorians one commended National Merit Scholarship Finalist. Kickapoo had 19 students who qualified for Bright Flight, and 159 students who were eligible for A+ incentive grants. Forty Kickapoo graduates received the President’s Award for Educational Excellence; 59 received honors diplomas; 143 earned College Preparatory Certificates and 84 were members of National Honor Society. Kickapoo seniors have accepted more than $4 million in scholarships.

• Parkview High School had 318 graduates, including four valedictorians and three Bright Flight qualifiers. Parkview had 128 students eligible for A+ funds; 51 recipients of honors diplomas and 66 recipients of College Preparatory Certificates. Among Parkview graduates, 57 were members of National Honor Society. This year’s Parkview graduates have accepted more than $3.2 million in scholarships.

While Springfield Public Schools includes graduating students at Bailey Alternative High School and Middle College in the total numbers of graduates at their home schools, students at Bailey and Middle College earned $3,000 and $99,448, respectively, in total scholarships, the SPS news release said.

• With 89 graduates, Springfield Catholic High School had 26 summa cum laude graduating seniors, with grade-point averages of 4.0 or better; 17 magna cum  laude seniors and 13 cum laude graduates. The SCHS Class of 2011 had 34 members of the National Honor Society, 19 Bright Flight qualifiers and seven Academic All-Star athletes. Two seniors received Commended Scholar recognition from the National Merit Scholarship Foundation, one graduate was a National Merit semifinalist and two graduates were National Merit scholars. All SCHS graduates are college-bound, the release said.  One graduate, Rachel Scott, daughter of Drs. Wendell and Jamie Scott, was named a U.S. Presidential Scholar. She will be honored for her academic accomplishments in June in Washington, D.C., according to a separate news release.[[In-content Ad]]