The 76 Menino and Community Service scholars in the Class of 2028 were welcomed at a reception at the Questrom School of Business by Linda Chen, senior deputy superintendent of Boston Public Schools (foreground, from left), BU President Melissa Gilliam, and Rebecca Grainger, senior advisor to Boston Mayor Michelle Wu.

Academics

Talent, and Scholarships, Power Boston Public School Students to BU

Menino Scholars and Community Service Award winners welcomed at annual reception

Who says there’s no such thing as fate? Standing in front of the BU seal on Marsh Plaza as a fifth grader, Mariaelena Suazo recalls hearing the University lore about it: “They told us that if you stepped on it, you wouldn’t graduate. And I was like, ‘Well, I’m not stepping on it.’ Someone pushed me on it, and I got really upset, as if I was already attending BU. I just felt like I had a place there.”

Turns out she did. 

As a student at Charlestown High School, Suazo attended Upward Bound, BU’s college-prep program, and interned at the Wheelock College of Education & Human Development, assisting with a book about “demystifying higher education for students,” she says. This semester, Suazo (CGS’26) became a Terrier, with plans to ultimately enter Sargent College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences, courtesy of a Community Service Award. The University provides these scholarships to eligible Boston Public Schools (BPS) graduates. 

She and her older sister are the first in their family to attend college. Her Honduran father immigrated here by walking in 1997, she says, while her Dominican mother immigrated with Suazo’s sister in 2000; her father graduated from eighth grade and her mother from high school. Asked how helpful her scholarship will be, she sighs deeply before saying, “So helpful. I got rejected from all my other dream schools, and my safety schools did give me enough [aid], but I would have had to take out loans. And BU gave me so much money that I don’t have to take out loans.” One reason her parents came to the United States was to send their children to college, she says. “They’re very proud. We’re doing something that they never got to do. I’m proud of myself, too.”

At the annual reception held last week for the 52 Community Service recipients and another 24 BPS graduates entering BU as Menino Scholars, new University President Melissa Gilliam, speaking at the event for the first time, told the gathering, “I am so excited for the next chapter of your lives to begin.

“You might think about studying abroad, joining one of nearly 500 clubs and affinity groups, participating in sports or other recreational activities, and of course, engaging with the community in which you live, study, and work.

“I encourage you to support each other within this esteemed group,” Gilliam continued, “and to welcome your fellow classmates who may have come from a long way to study in your great city. Be open to differing viewpoints, engage in conversation with people who are different than you, with ideas that are new to you. Be activists, find ways to collaborate with community members with different interests.”

Community Service Award recipients receive their full calculated financial need, without loans. This year’s recipients will receive $10 million over four years. Award winners are also paired with a mentor to help them successfully transition to BU, and all recipients must complete 25 hours of volunteer work each semester, beginning with spring 2025.

Over 51 years, the Menino Scholars have become the oldest, largest scholarship program for BPS students. The merit-based program—renamed in 2013 from Boston Scholars, to honor the city’s longtime mayor, the late Thomas M. Menino (Hon.’01), a College of Arts & Sciences political science professor of the practice and codirector of BU’s Institute on Cities—has awarded more than $211 million in financial support to 2,171 students attending BU, providing recipients with full tuition. They also are eligible for need-based aid to cover room and board. Over four years, this year’s recipients will receive $6.4 million in scholarships and will participate in a weeklong academic orientation and an ongoing support program.

Recipients say their scholarships are game-changers in providing access to higher education.

Community Service Scholar Alina Ngo’s mother and grandmother immigrated from Vietnam to Boston when her mother was just 18. Beantown-born, Ngo (CAS’28) immersed herself in activities at the John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics and Science: secretary and social media coordinator for the Environmentalism and Recycling Club, studying constitutional law for high school students at Suffolk University, and winning a regional moot court competition.

“I will be the first person in my family to attend college,” Ngo says, “and it is just emotional thinking about it, because my mom had to sacrifice a lot for me to have the best life I can, especially as a single mom. So I always dedicate my achievements to my mother, who is always rooting for me. Getting this degree will mean a lot.”

Attending college locally was a must—Ngo helps her mom care for her grandmother. “I’m from a low-income family, so one of the main reasons why I hesitated to commit to BU was the tuition,” she says. “But with the scholarship, that weight had lifted off our shoulders. I will be able to just focus on my education, not stressing over having to pay thousands of dollars in loans back.” 

“With my mom being a single parent with no job, and always making ways to provide for her three children,” says Menino Scholar Zania Mendes Sang (Sargent’28), “I believe God knew I needed this scholarship.” Without it, she says, “I probably never would’ve had the chance to get the real college experience.” The Snowden International High School grad is the first in her family to attend college. As a future dentist (her present goal) and family provider, she says, the financial support from BU will offer “the chance to break generational curses and be the big sister I always wanted to be to my little brothers.” 

A Menino Scholarship continues a family tradition for Gabriel Yuan (CAS’28): his brother, Fang Yuan (CAS’12), also received a Menino Scholarship. “This is like a full circle moment for my family,” he says, adding that his scholarship “was the deciding factor in my decision to attend BU. With colleges being so expensive nowadays, not having to worry about paying for college is a huge blessing. I can fully focus on school without the need to stress about finances, which is huge for me.”

After his family immigrated from China in 2001, Yuan attended Boston Latin School, played trumpet in the school band and varsity tennis, and joined DECA, a nonprofit that trains students in marketing, finance, and management. He also volunteers at his church as a guitarist, pianist, and server at the children’s liturgy. 

“Having grown up in Boston and being super familiar with the city, Boston University was a perfect fit for me,” Yuan says. “The opportunities that BU offers, and it being in the heart of the city, are the main things that interested me in BU. There are endless possibilities when it comes to technology, so I hope to discover what I want to do with technology by studying computer science and economics at BU.”