ITEM PHOTO BY OWEN O’ROURKE
Lynn Classical High students who are heading to Ivy League colleges, from left, Nataly Rodriguez Mauricio, Cornell; Julie Ngauv, Harvard; and Krystal Veras, Princeton.
BY MICHELE DURGIN
LYNN — Lynn Classical High School’s mission is to meet the needs of its students and ensure that they become conscientious and self-reliant learners who are college and career ready.
The three teenagers who will soon graduate and attend Ivy League colleges are living examples of the school’s reason for being, and more.
Nataly Rodriguez Mauricio will attend Cornell University, Julie Ngauv is headed to Harvard University and Krystal Veras will be a freshman at Princeton University.
“They have made Classical very proud,” said Gene Constantino, principal, who has been at Classical since 1981.
Mauricio, who was also accepted to Boston University, Carnegie Mellon University and Syracuse University, leaves Classical with a list of activities she participated in while she’s been a Ram. It includes membership in the National Honor Society, the French Club and the Calculus Club. She is also the Senior Class Chairperson.
“Optimistic” was the term Mauricio chose when asked to select one word to describe herself. She was enthusiastic about the teachers who, she said, shaped her.
“Mr. Bastarache, my calculus teacher, stayed and worked with about 12 of us on Friday until 8:00 at night and helped us prepare for the AP exam,”she said.” The community here, which includes students, teachers and counselors, is so supportive.”
Mauricio spoke of the backing she has received at home, as she looks back at what and who has helped prepare her for this important time in her life.
“Both of my parents and my two little sisters have been a great support,”she said. “My mom and dad are especially proud because I will be the first generation of my family to attend college.”
Mauricio holds a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and works part- time at the U.S. TaeKwonDo Center in Lynn. She is a member of the Global Embassy of Activists for Peace, whose mission is to work for peace, progress, well-being and happiness of the world.
Her hope for the future includes a successful career in the information science world. She wants to help others in an effort to give back, in gratitude, for those who have helped her.
Harvard-bound Ngauv is anxious to get her college career
moving. She is the first generation of her family to attend secondary school.
“My parents came here from Cambodia and they never got to finish their education,” she said. “They encourage me to work hard and be independent. They have helped me appreciate what I have. And, yes, it’s a bit sad to be leaving, but I am excited to move forward in life and start on a new path.”
Last summer, Ngauv was part of the Young Scholars Program at Northeastern University. She volunteered at Children’s Hospital in Boston and Operation Bootstrap, an adult basic education program in Lynn.
She is looking forward to participating in a lab research internship at Beth Israel Hospital this summer. Ngauv, who was also accepted to Yale University, Williams College and Brown University, hopes to become a cardiologist.
Ngauv said she leaves Classical knowing that diversity is an important quality to nurture. She said learning about other cultures challenged her “to think differently.”
She is hoping to be part of Doctors Without Borders, an international program which encourages doctors to serve those in need.
“There are so many people around the world who don’t have access to the medical services they need and I want to help them as best I can,” she said.
Not to be outdone by her classmates, Veras chose Princeton University over other schools, which included Bowdoin College, Vassar College and Bryn Mawr College.
“My mom and I came here from the Dominican Republic when I was six years old,” she said. “She brought me here so that I would have a chance at a dream. My dream was college.”
Veras said that the diversity that is celebrated at Classical has prepared her well for life beyond high school. She has been a part of the Girls Inc. program and is working with the Part of the Solution Program, whose mission is to empower Lynn youth with substance abuse education and healthy alternatives.
Veras said she is grateful to all of the people who have helped along the way and wants to give back.
“My hope is that someday I can be part of someone’s opportunity for a successful life,” she said. “I believe that what I have gotten here should be passed on to someone else.”
Jessica Toomey, the school’s guidance counselor, said she is proud the girls have worked hard and deserve it all.
“They never shied away from any opportunity to better themselves or their community and they are true role models for all teens today,” she said.