BSGE Class of 2011 Receives a Record Number of IB Diplomas

BSGE’s Class of 2011 received a school record 36 IB Diplomas last year. Of the 64 students who graduated in 2011, 55 were IB Diploma candidates and 36 students received enough points to earn the full IB diploma, a major achievement for the students and the school. “They worked together to support each other in the gauntlet of senior year and the IB exam process. Hopeful- ly this will continue to benefit them in their college years” said 12th grade IB History of the Americas teacher and Diploma coordinator, Ms. Jennifer Dikes.

In addition to their hard work, Ms. Connie You, 10th and 11th grade English teacher, identified their personal qualities and group dynamics as reasons for their success. “The factors that pulled them through were the

strength of their personalities and their relationships with each other. That accounts for the level of their success,” said Ms. You.

In order to receive the IB Diploma, a candidate must have met the various requirements, the first being CAS hours. All students must complete a total of
150 hours of Creativity, Action, and Service. There are also several Internal Assessments (graded by BSGE teachers) that must be completed in order to sit for the exams. Along with these pre- requisites, students must also meet certain point distribution requirements on their exams and complete the Extended Essay and Theory of Knowledge Essay.

Additionally, all 64 students who graduated were admitted to and went on to attend 4 year colleges, a BSGE first.

“It was our most successful year in regards to college admissions
and set a new standard for coming graduating classes,” said Peter Wilson BSGE’s and Community and College Service Coordinator. Students also sent out a record number of applications, averaging between 9 and 12 each. At the same time, however,

more students than ever had to turn down offers from their dream schools because the financial aid offers they received were not adequate to cover tuition. Many students chose to attend local schools over schools that would require them to dorm attend CUNY or SUNY schools over private schools because of the drastic difference in cost.