New Roots Charter School Celebrates Distinguished Cornell Graduating Senior

New Roots Charter School Celebrates Distinguished Cornell Graduating Senior

New Roots alumna Rosy Glos (Class of 2016) was one of 35 outstanding Cornell University seniors recently recognized as 2020 Merrill Presidential Scholars, honored for her “academic achievements, leadership, and potential to contribute to society.” The scholars must be in the top 1% of their class, and this year they hail from 14 U.S. states as well as India and China. 

Rosy, who is from Berkshire, NY, attributes her early sense of academic confidence and ambition, despite feelings of serious intimidation, to her New Roots science teacher, David Streib. When Rosy decided while in high school that she wanted to study plant biology in college, Streib arranged for an internship with a local botanist, and soon Glos was volunteering at Cornell’s Liberty Bailey Hortorium Herbarium. 

“I met professors and curators and techs in the herbarium. And that’s when I realized that I might be able to carve out a space for myself at Cornell,” Glos said. “Even though it seemed like such a huge place, I now knew people, and I saw how cool the community of plant scientists was there. David Streib was really instrumental in helping and encouraging me to do that.”

One unique component of this award is that the honor is shared with a high school teacher and a Cornell faculty member who have inspired them and contributed to their academic development. This honor is bestowed through STAR (Special Teachers Are Recognized) Scholarships, which are named in honor of teachers recognized by each Merrill Scholar and are awarded to Cornell students with financial need from each scholar’s hometown.

“All too often with awards, they just recognize the student. But none of us are in a vacuum,” Glos added. “If we’ve been successful, it’s really only because of all of the people surrounding us, helping us get there, all the way back to elementary school.” Glos was also recently honored with a 2020 State University of New York Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence. “It’s really fabulous that we get the opportunity to recognize those who supported us on our way to Cornell and through it.”

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For more information, contact Michael Mazza, director of community engagement at New Roots Charter School, at mmazza@newrootsschool.org.