Raven Osbourne gained national attention in recent weeks for managing to graduate from both high school and college simultaneously — an accomplishment that Gary Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson said is something her family should be proud of.
Yet the Gary mayor said Osbourne is not completely unique. She made a point on Tuesday during the Common Council’s meeting of acknowledging seven other high school students from Gary who all managed to take college courses while still in high school to the point where they qualified for associate’s degrees from Purdue University-Northwest.
“So often, we hear about students who struggle to get their high school diploma,” Freeman-Wilson said. “We have … exceptional students here in the city of Gary, and I think it’s wholly appropriate to acknowledge them.”
Those included Gregory Clark, Shantaniese Davis, Breonna Reese, Raven Skinner, D’Nesha Young, Chene Hightower and Ashley Burton. All are now high school graduates of 21st Century who also have associate’s degrees from Purdue’s campus in Hammond.
Admittedly, Osbourne got a bit more glory from the mayor on Tuesday, who presented her with the Distinguished Garyite Award, a plaque usually reserved for adult accomplishments.
Yet the mayor said she thinks Osbourne is just as worthy, what with the way the 21st Century Charter School student took courses at Ivy Tech Community College while still a freshman and earned a general studies associate’s degree. Then, she went on to take more courses at Purdue Northwest’s Hammond campus and wound up gaining both her bachelor’s degree in sociology, along with her high school diploma, on the same day.
Osbourne herself was silent. But Freeman-Wilson acknowledged the one practical benefit to the girl’s parents — they won’t have to figure out how to pay for their child’s continued education.
“As parents who have to invest in their child’s education, that’s a parent’s dream,” the mayor said.
“These young people are likely to become successful as adults,” the mayor said. “Maybe they’ll come back here and become the future leaders of our city.”
Other young people who were honored Tuesday included Dana Evans, a basketball player at West Side who also is a McDonald’s All-American. She also received the Distinguished Garyite Award.
Also praised were Justine Izah and Alaina Patterson, both of whom are Gary residents and Girl Scouts who have achieved the rank of Gold Star scouts.
To which the mayor said, “I was a Girl scout for 12 years, and I never was a Gold Star. This is a significant achievement.”
Gregory Tejeda is a freelance reporter from the Post-Tribune.
