Edner Paul, Haitian immigrant and MIT, Class of 2013

Photo: The Boston Globe Edner Paul is a 16 year old from Haiti who will be entering MIT this fall on a scholarship. A Boston Globe article describes how "MIT was Paul's first choice" and "his scholarship is valued at $50,000 a year." "He arrived in Boston barely able to speak or write in English, but Edner Paul did not allow that to stand in his way. In his four short years in the United States, this 16-year-old whiz kid from Haiti accomplished one feat after another. He mastered the English language within months and soon after passed a rigorous admission exam to the John D. O'Bryant School of Mathematics and Science. On Friday, he will graduate as valedictorian with a full scholarship to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His success is as much a story about new immigrants as it is a tale about the re-emergence of the O'Bryant. Paul's admission to MIT follows that of two O'Bryant graduates last year. They are the first crop of students from that school to attend MIT in recent memory, said MIT and Boston school officials." Edner grew up in St. Marc, Haiti. He is the first from his family to finish High School. He decided at an early age to devote himself to school. Edner's mother never graduated from high school and she wanted better for Edner, so he studied very hard in order to succeed in school.

Photo: questbridge.org Edner's profile on Questbridge (a non-profit program that links students with some of the nation's best colleges) states that "He and his family came to the United States in March 2005 with the hope of having a better life. Adjusting to a new environment has been difficult, but Edner constantly tries to expand his knowledge and has now developed a passion for poetry and tries to connect with nature in particular."