Academic Excellence Takes Flight at Worcester Regional Airport
13 Worcester-area valedictorians honored with roundtrip airfare
WORCESTER – Thirteen high school valedictorians from Worcester, Auburn, Grafton, Leicester, Millbury, Shrewsbury, and West Boylston were honored today for their accomplishments with roundtrip U.S. airfare from Worcester Regional Airport (ORH) courtesy of Delta Air Lines and the Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport). The students were recognized during a ceremony.
“I congratulate all of our valedictorians and I’m proud to recognize each of their outstanding achievements,” said Congressman Jim McGovern (D-MA). “We believe each of them can be part of what makes Central Massachusetts remain competitive in the global economy. Massachusetts is blessed with so many advantages, but the best of these are the young people who will be our future leaders.”
“These impressive young men and women have achieved an incredible milestone, and as Lt. Governor and a Central Massachusetts native, I am pleased to congratulate each of them on this impressive achievement,” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito. “I am confident these rising stars will go on to do great things and may someday bring their talents back home to Central Massachusetts.”
Seven of the 13 valedictorians are from Worcester. Two of them, Jonny T. Le from Burncoat High School and Julia G. Traiger from Doherty Memorial High School, earned a GPA of 4.87, the highest in this group. Some of them participated in varsity sports, including Amy N. Ho of North High School, who was a 2-time Inter-High Volleyball All-Star, and Alyssa Goins from South High Community School, who was the Captain of her school’s Cross-Country team. All of them have contributed to their communities in various capacities. For example, Janely Rosario from University Park Campus School volunteers at Jeremiah’s Inn; Ryan Escobar from Worcester Technical High School was a Student Ambassador at St. Vincent Hospital and has earned his CNA license; and Thanh Nha Tran from Claremont Academy participated in discussions of social issues at the annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Youth Conference at Framingham State University. These exceptional students will be attending colleges and universities in Massachusetts this fall.
“As a former student of the Worcester Public Schools it gives me great pride to honor these incredible young people who have achieved so much both inside and outside of the classroom during their high school careers,” said Worcester City Manager Edward M. Augustus, Jr. “These students are some of our best and brightest young minds and I encourage them to stay local and lend their time and talent as a way to give back to their communities.”
“As we strive to prepare all of our graduates to be global citizens, we are very appreciative of Massport and Delta Air Lines to partner with the Worcester Public Schools to recognize excellence,” said Worcester Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Maureen Binienda. “Congratulations to our 2019 valedictorians.”
The following valedictorians were honored at Worcester Regional Airport and received the free roundtrip tickets from Worcester to any Delta Air Lines destination in the continental U.S.:
- Jonny T. Le, Burncoat High School
- Thanh Nha N. Tran, Claremont Academy
- Julia G. Traiger, Doherty Memorial High School
- Amy N. Ho, North High School
- Alyssa C. Goins, South High Community School
- Bryan M. Escobar, Worcester Technical High School
- Janely Rosario, University Park Campus School
- Emily Oliver, Leicester High School
- Jared Sargent, Auburn High School
- Calleigh Herren, Grafton High School
- Alison Drapeau, Millbury Memorial Junior/Senior High School
- Julia Duda, Shrewsbury High School
- Priscilla Anand, West Boylston Middle/High School
The event is part of Massport’s community outreach and public awareness initiatives in Central Massachusetts and Metro West.
“We congratulate these young men and women for their hard work in the classroom and their dedication to serving their communities. We are proud of them and expect great things as they head to college,” said Massport Acting CEO John Pranckevicius. “We hope these students use these Delta Air Lines tickets not only to explore the country, but also to advance their academic goals as they take flight into the next chapter of their lives.”
Since Massport took ownership of Worcester Regional Airport in 2010, the authority has invested over $100 million on improvements, including in a Category III Instrument Landing System, completed in 2018.
Beginning in August, Delta will provide the 5th daily roundtrip service and 3rd hub airport from Worcester, with their flight to Detroit. Currently, JetBlue offer flights to New York’s JFK International Airport, Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport, and Orlando International Airport, and American Airlines flies to Philadelphia International Airport. Together, these flights offer connections to hundreds of destinations worldwide.
“On behalf of the more than 1,500 Delta people based in Massachusetts, I’m proud to join our partners at Massport in recognizing the tremendous accomplishments of these students,” said Ravi Dadhich, Director of Boston Airport Operations at Delta Air Lines. “Delta’s commitment to Massachusetts goes beyond our work at the airport. Giving back to the communities in which we live, work and serve is core to our culture, and Delta supports a range of organizations throughout the state that are doing important work to shape the lives of future employees and customers.”
Worcester Red Sox President, Dr. Charles Steinberg, delivered the event’s keynote address. The team will move to New England’s second largest city in 2021. Plans are underway to break ground for a new ballpark, called Polar Park, near Worcester’s Kelley Square, about 5 miles away from ORH.
“What an honor it will be to meet these bright, inspiring students,” said Dr. Charles A. Steinberg, President of the Worcester Red Sox. “We may very well be seeing key members of Worcester’s future, a future that seems to brighten by the day.”
Earlier this year, Massport launched a $300,000 marketing campaign to double the passenger volume at ORH to 400,000 annually within the next five years. The campaign also includes billboards and social media ads intended to drive awareness about the airport’s ease of use, affordable parking options, connections and flight offerings that can benefit business commuters and leisure travelers.