DECATUR — Ryan Shaffer, a senior at Decatur High School, received news Dec. 1 from QuestBridge that he was one of 767 students chosen to receive a full four-year scholarship at one of the program's select colleges and universities.
Shaffer, along with classmate Dylan Frydrychowski, was among 14,491 seniors to submit an application to the QuestBridge program, a national non-profit organization that connects exceptional, low-income youth with leading institutions of higher learning. Once selected for the program, the students are obligated to attend the college to which they applied. Because of this long-term commitment, Frydrychowski withdrew his application from the program.
QuestBridge's main objective is "to increase the percentage of talented, low-income students attending the nations' best colleges and to support them to achieve success in their respective careers and communities," according to a QuestBridge press release.
The Palo Alto (Calif.) organization makes 38 of the best colleges and universities in the United States available to students who otherwise could not afford this kind of educational experience. The program includes such big names as Duke, Dartmouth, Northwestern, Yale, Stanford, MIT, Notre Dame, Rice, Vanderbilt, University of Southern California and Tufts.
Shaffer and Frydrychowski were two of 14,491 to submit an application to the QuestBridge program. After carefully reviewing each application, 5,338 finalist were chosen, of which 767 "exceptional students" were selected as the 2016 College Match Scholarship Recipients. Shaffer's school of choice was Tufts University near Boston.
Tufts University, located in Medford, Mass, is a liberal arts college with a student population of 5,177. It offers a school of fine arts as well as a school of engineering. Shaffer was one of 44 students selected from QuestBridge to attend this school.
Shaffer has the makings of a true renaissance man. In his high school career, he has done everything from playing on a championship basketball team to leading the Decatur High School marching band down Main Street in Decatur.
In June of 2016, Shaffer, along with classmate Shaney Lee, was chosen to attend the Arkansas Governor's School at Hendrix College in Conway. Both Shaffer and Lee were among 400 gifted students, between their junior and senior years, nominated by their high schools to attend the six-week program. The AGS program provides each student with enriching intellectual experiences and growth on their way to life after high school.
"The whole place was set in an academic atmosphere. Everyone wanted to be there to learn, so that is what made it fun," Shaffer said. "The classes were really relaxed, which made it easy for us to learn."
Shaffer's focus for the six-week project was on mathematics, while Lee's was on the visual arts. Both Shaffer and Lee went through a series of classes each day. The classes were designed to bolster self-esteem and build leadership skills enabling the students to gain a competitive edge when entering college or the work force after high school.
"Math was one of the classes we went to. But we also had other areas we went to as well," Shaffer said. "Another class was intellectual development, which was kind of like philosophy, in a way."
Shaffer volunteered in several areas this year, including helping his mother, Anna Wilkins, in the concession stand during the home volleyball, football, and basketball games thus far. He also worked for the city of Decatur as a life guard at City Park Pool, a position he held for the last two years.
One of Shaffer's passions is music. He learned to play the clarinet and alto saxophone but switched to tenor saxophone, an instrument on which he excelled. He has earned first chair in several regional and state band competitions and earned spots on the state jazz band two years ago. His musical talent and unwavering devotion to the Decatur High School band program earned him the drum major's position in the marching band. Several times during the football program, Shaffer mounted the director's podium to lead his fellow musicians during the band's halftime presentation. Three times this year he has led the band down Main Street in Decatur during the Homecoming, Veteran's, and Christmas Parades.
In addition to music and sports, Shaffer serves as class president. He is also the vice-president of the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America Decatur chapter.
Although Shaffer is leaning toward a degree in civil engineering, he is not limiting his career choices just yet. He is carefully reviewing the economics or political science programs at Tufts to see if these might better suit his interests.
General News on 01/11/2017