RUHS Senior’s Project
Gets $10,000 Award
By M. D. Drysdale

Randolph Union High School senior Nate Soares presides over the high school computer programming class that he conceived and implemented for his senior project. The ambitious project resulted in a award of $10,000 from the AXA Achievement Scholarship program. (Herald / Tim Calabro)

When Nathaniel Soares began his senior project at Randolph Union High School, he had no idea how rewarding it would be.

Some rewards he expected—the reward of learning how to teach, of learning more about computer programming, the reward of creating something of value for other students.

What he didn’t expect was what he received this week: notice that he will receive $10,000 as the state winner of the 2007 AXA Achievement Scholarship.

Nate is one of 52 students, one from each state, plus Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, to win the award.

The announcement was made this week by Robert Woodcock, manager of AXA Advisors' Albany Branch. AXA Advisors, LLC, is a provider of financial services for consumers and business.

Nate’s senior project, which won the AXA award, was to set up a computer programming course at RUHS after he became discouraged at what was being offered.

The son of Chris and Laura Soares, Nate approached Jeremy Lesniak, proprietor of Vermont Computing on Merchant’s Row, to be his mentor and sought help at Vermont Technical College, where he is taking several courses in this, his senior year.

He trained himself in methods of instruction, devised the syllabus, secured room space and computer access at the Randolph Technical Career Center, and convinced fellow scholars to take the course. He has 12 students in the sememster course, which he teaches twice a week. Students receive a half-credit.

Reluctance at RUHS

Although the project has ended successfully, it was not easy at the beginning, Nate said. His senior project essay indicates that he had to overcome considerable reluctance on the part of the RUHS administration and faculty to the idea of offering computer courses.

"Appalled that students preparing for college or careers were getting absolutely no training with computers, I was unwilling to accept this response," he wrote.

Even after deciding to teach the course himself, he was unable to secure a room with computers in the high school. At the RTCC, he received a very different response, he wrote. There, the computer teacher made her room and 12 computers available, and she also ensured that students could get credit by being present herself.

The course, which began Jan. 19, enrolled six RTCC students and six RUHS students. It has been, Nate said this week, "pretty fun—the kids have shown lots of improvement."

Judging from his essay, he still feels incredulous at the state of computer instruction at the high school.

"I hope to…offer a chance to develop vital skills that should be available to all modern high school students," he wrote.

"I'm also hoping my efforts will inspire the school to continue offering computer courses as a permanent part of the curriculum."

He hopes to attend either Tufts, George Washington University, or the Rochester Institute of Technology next year.

AXA Achievement

AXA Achievement is the initiative of the AXA Foundation, the philanthropic arm of AXA Equitable. It provides both scholarships and information support for promising college-bound students.

Since 2003, the AXA Foundation has awarded over $14.5 million in college scholarships to more than 2,700 students.

The names of the scholarship winners will be published in U.S. News & World Report's College Financing issue, which will be available at newsstands, and online at www.usnews.com.