Thornhill
July 31, 2008 08:09 PM
Teresa Latchford
Grades aren’t everything, but they sure do help, according to this year’s top scholars.
Thornhill Secondary School student Olga Ace and Adrian Budhram from Bayview Secondary School tied as the top scholars in the region for the public board, with averages of 98.8 per cent in their six core courses.
For the Catholic board, Griselda Lam of St. Robert Catholic High School had the top average of 99.2 per cent.
“I wanted to get everything out of school I could,” Ms Ace said. “Grades aren’t the end of the world, but it was important to me that if I could achieve the grades, why not?”
She explained her grades reflect her dedication to completing assignments and studying for exams.
“Many people are capable of achieving these grades, but they have to give a consistent effort throughout the entire school year,” she said.
Earning an impressive average opened up many career choice opportunities.
She has accepted a scholarship and admission to the University of Toronto next fall to study life science. From there, she hopes to pursue a career in biological research or attend medical school.
She credits her interest in biology to the many school experiences in which she participated, including writing the annual National Biology Competition at the University of Toronto, where her school team took top honours and she earned fourth.
“It really helps to have a goal,” she said.
“Otherwise, it is really hard to motivate yourself to do your best.”
Miss Lam doesn’t have a secret to achieve good grades, but she did what was expected: her homework.
Every night, she completed the work assigned by her teachers along with projects and exam preparation before tests to ensure she was ready.
“I guess one of my secrets was to take a lot of breaks when I started to feel panicky,” she added.
“I’m lucky I have a good memory and pick up things quickly so I don’t think it’s a case of being more smart, just a case of hard work.”
She will attend McMaster University in the fall to work on her BA of health sciences.
The pre-medical program is competitive — only 160 students are accepted out of 3,000 applicants this year.
The top scholars in Markham/Thornhill:Griselda Lam, 99.2, St. Robert Catholic High
Olga Ace, 98.8, Thornhill Secondary
Shi-Ling Sinn, 98.8, St. Robert Catholic High
Curtis Chim, 98.7, St. Robert Catholic High
Matthew Biskup, 98.5, Brother Andre Catholic High
Stephanie Sha, 98.3, St. Robert Catholic High
Lydia Cheng, 98.1, St. Robert Cathoic High
Sanjana Chowdhury, 98, St. Robert Catholic High
Jessica Ooi, 98, Fr. Michael McGivney Catholic High
Jetan Badhiwala, 97.8, Markham District High
Zongyi Yang, 97.8, Markville Secondary
Giorgio Proestos, 97.5, St. Augustine Catholic High