Laurel King says:

April 17, 2009 at 7:28 am

Letter to be sent to Rep. Robert DeLeo later today:

Allow me to tell you about something that Massachusetts is doing right. Along with Worcester Polytechnic Institute, the legislature has been funding Massachusetts Academy of Math and Science, an 11th and 12th grade high school for academically accelerated students. My son is fortunate to be a junior at Mass Academy. The Academy has helped him evolve from a student of untapped potential into an engaged scholar with strong connections to his school and community.

Mass Academy students participate in high-level studies and conduct real research; they don’t simply process information to pass a test. Besides the rigorous course work in mathematical modeling, applied physics, computer science, engineering, Spanish, humanities, and technical/scientific writing, this year my son participated in a Harvard/MIT math meet, a Fitchburg State computer science competition, a 48-hour national math challenge, and a DuPont essay competition. At the regional science fair, he won a Naval Research award for his project on artificial intelligence and swarm theory. “I know grad students who couldn’t handle that level of programming,” a WPI grad student in computer science told him. Next month my son will compete in the state science fair at MIT. Last year, without the support of Mass Academy, he didn’t even qualify for the regional fair.

The educators at Mass Academy know that talented students require strong connections with peers and teachers in order to reach their full potential. The collegial atmosphere of the Academy fosters these bonds. Juniors frequently work together in small groups; they do not compete with each other for class rank, but instead challenge each other to put forth their best efforts, as they work toward common goals. The parent/teacher conference I attended at Mass Academy was unlike any other I’ve been to. I sat down with all six of my child’s teachers and was amazed to discover how well they knew my reticent son and just what he needed to flourish academically and socially.

As with academics, community service is conducted at a high level at Mass Academy. Service learning is directly built into the Academy’s engineering curriculum. My son’s group of four is currently designing a device to help a child with cerebral palsy write. Students also carry out individual community service projects that must pass stringent requirements and be approved by the principal. In my son’s case, he attended training sessions at Tufts Vet School in Grafton and tested to become a registered Pet Partner, qualified to visit nursing homes, hospitals, and schools. He and our Golden Retriever currently volunteer at a Worcester nursing home and have made special connections with residents who have lost the ability for traditional social interaction. My son would never have taken on this challenge without the Academy behind him.

My son is just one of the talented Mass Academy juniors who have already begun to enrich the communities where they live and learn. If these high school juniors can accomplish this much in their first year, just think what they can do their last year when they take all their classes at WPI. Then, think what it means if Mass Academy loses its funding, and please put Massachusetts Academy of Math and Science back in the 2010 House budget. As you make your difficult decisions, remember that if the Academy closes, it is not just these current students and future gifted students who will feel the loss. The loss of what they might have accomplished will ripple throughout Massachusetts communities, businesses and the high tech industry for years to come.

Dear Mr. DeLeo,

You may have already read many emails and fielded phone calls from parents, teachers and other concerned folks about the possible funding cut for MA Academy of Math and Science.

As a parent of a junior in the academy I would like to humbly add my voice and request you to take a few minutes to review the excellent education and leadership skills this school is imparting to an extremely talented and motivated student body - http://www.savetheacademy.org.

I cannot believe that to save $1.2 Million annually, we the people of MA will let a institution as unique and important as the MA Academy of Math and Science cease to exist! We all know times are tough and sacrifices and difficult decisions have to be made but denying funding for a school such as this, in my opinion, will be extremely unfortunate and deny our great state the ability to nurture and grow the leaders of tomorrow.

I can understand that you must be getting hundreds if not thousands of appeals from various organizations and people about changes in funding to their respective causes and decision making should be fraught with a lot of angst, all we request is that you take a hard, close look at MA Academy of Math and Science and am sure you will be convinced that this is one of the best investments the state is making for its future.

Thank your time and consideration,

Srinivas Bhopal

Pete Lane says:

April 16, 2009 at 4:38 am

Our daughter is class of 1997. I think one of the biggest things she got out of Mass Academy is the realization that it’s OK for a girl to be smart.

Jean Gonynor says:

April 12, 2009 at 9:31 am

I am the parent of a Mass Academy alum. Here is a letter I sent to my legislators:

I reside in Acton and am writing to you regarding the threat of closure of the Massachusetts Academy of Mathematics and Science at WPI in Worcester due to budget cuts. In case you are not familiar with Mass Academy, it opened 17 years ago near the campus of WPI and has been a tremendous resource to highly able students in math and science. It accepts students residing in Massachusetts for the junior and senior year of high school and offers them a very challenging curriculum that includes the opportunity to complete the high school senior year alongside WPI students. These students have gone on to incredible levels of achievment. Many would not have found the same level of success without Mass Academy, since their families are of lesser means and could not have afforded private education for them.

My son Jon is a 2005 graduate of Mass Academy. We are one of those families of “lesser means”. I am proud to say that Jon is graduating next month with two bachelor’s degrees from a highly ranked engineering school. I cannot stress enough how important a role Mass Academy played in his success. When Jon first went to Mass Academy, he had an “edge”, which was the result of years of feeling like a misfit in the traditional academic setting. Although he was excelling academically, he was miserable socially and not adequately challenged.

I will never forget my first parent-teacher conference at Mass Academy. Jon’s teachers talked about how they had identified that defensive “edge” in him and were thrilled to watch him shed it as he truly found himself among a group of classmates that were like-minded and equally motivated and curious. He truly blossomed there. I cried on the way home from that conference because I knew he was finally happy, fitting in with his peers and getting what he needed academically from an incredible group of educators that seemed to care as much about him as I did. I implore you to do what you can to save this program so that highly able students like my son can find the path that allows them to shed their defenses and give their gifts to the world.

Jean Gonynor