Maya Fiutak, an eighth grader at Scholars’ Academy Middle School, a screened school in Rockaway Beach, knows exactly what she wants to be when she grows up: a scientist, just like two of her grandparents.
So when she showed up at the high school fair in Queens, she wasted no time in talking to the two schools she was interested in: Bronx High School of Science and Queens High School for the Sciences at York College, both specialized high schools in which students are admitted based on their performance on an entrance exam.
“It’s just fascinating to find out about the world around you,” said Maya, after talking with recruiters at Bronx Science. She was impressed with the school.
“It’s a good option. They even have a planetarium,” she said.
Her mother fired question after question at the recruiters, trying to make sure the school would be a good fit for her daughter.
Maya said she did well on last year’s state math and reading tests, which less than a quarter of city students passed. But she said the tests were difficult.
“I felt that it was somewhat ridiculous that they gave us such a hard test,” she said.
Still, she doesn’t doubt that she’ll get into the school of her choice. She and her mom said distance from home will also be important when they decide which of the two science schools to rank first.
Parker Brown is a student at CUNY Graduate School of Journalism.