College Decision Day: Congratulations BEAM Seniors!

On Thursday, May 10th, BEAM students joined 12th graders across the city for College Decision Day at the Apollo Theater!  Nine BEAM 12th graders joined 200+ high school seniors from around the city who announced their college plans on stage... at the Apollo Theater!

We're pleased to announce the schools that the following students will be attending:

Images from left to right display: Aisha (Northwestern), Malachi (Binghamton), Tanasia (Rochester), Aishat (Yale), Will (Haverford), Henry (UMass Amherst), Ariel (Brandeis), Eli (Howard), Vielka (SUNY ESF), and Abrahan (BMCC). 

BEAM 11th graders: don't forget that College Kickoff is on Saturday, May 19!  In one year, you too could be on the stage of the Apollo Theater as we cheer for you. 

In addition to these 10 students, we want to give a shout-out to all our graduating seniors. Here's a list of BEAM students currently ready to announce their college decisions: 

• Abrahan: Borough of Manhattan Community College, CUNY

• Andy: Baruch College, CUNY

• Aisha: Northwestern University

• Aishat: Yale University

• Aleks: Penn State

• Alex: Vanderbilt

• Ariel: Brandeis University

• Christian: LaGuardia Community College, CUNY

• Edson: University of Southern California

• Eli: Howard University

• Henry: UMass Amherst

• Janequa: Cornell University

• Joel: Hunter College, CUNY

• LaRoi: Gettysburg College

• Malachi: Binghamton University, SUNY

• Melanie: New York University

• Michael: The City College of New York, CUNY

• Mona: Barnard College

• Pamela: Smith College

• Peter: University of Maryland, Baltimore County

• Seth: John Jay College, CUNY

• Tanasia: University of Rochester

• Thalyia: City Tech, CUNY

• Tia: Delaware State University

• Vielka: SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry

• Will: Haverford College

We also have at least two students taking a gap year: Crisleidy will be working at City Year (an Americorps program) while James will be joining the Marines. Both intend to attend college later. 

BEAM students were also awarded many scholarships and other forms of financial aid:

• The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation College Scholarship Program provides selected students with a full ride to the colleges they plan to attend. (awarded to Aishat)

• The Posse Scholars Program provides selected students with a full ride, as well as connections to other students in their area who attend the same college they plan to attend. (awarded to Ariel)

• The QuestBridge National College Match Program provides a full ride through college to students who are accepted at one of the program's partnering schools. (awarded to Will)

• The Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP) provides students from New York who attend a New York private college or university with a scholarship, dedicated advisor, and additional support during their time in college. (awarded to Mona, Tanasia)

• And numerous other students were offered amazing financial aid packages by the college they will attend. The scholarships provided by Cornell, Gettysburg, Northwestern, Smith, and USC are particularly generous, as these schools meet 100% of demonstrated need. That means that a low-income student can expect to pay nothing for college. In one case, a scholarship was so generous that a student actually gets money back to pay for expenses that may come up, such as flights to and from home at the start and end of each semester!

Our seniors did an incredible amount of work to get through high school and to this day.  Congratulations to you all! 11th graders: now it's your turn and BEAM is here for you. 

In addition to all these students going to great colleges, at least one BEAM senior will be taking a productive gap year. Congratulations to Crisleidy who will be working at City Year next year! 

Finally, for those following along at home, here is a list of the colleges to which BEAM students were admitted this year:

Andy

Aleks

Alex

Eli

Michael

Mona

Pamela

Will

Barnard College Baruch College, CUNY Binghamton University, SUNY Brandeis University Brooklyn College, CUNY The City College of New York, CUNY Clarkson University The College at Brockport, SUNY College of Staten Island, CUNY Cornell University Delaware State University Drexel University Duke University Emerson College Gettysburg College Haverford College Howard University LaGuardia Community College, CUNY

Lehman College, CUNY Macalester College Manhattan College New York City College of Technology, CUNY New York Institute of Technology Northwestern University Pennsylvania State University Pomona College Purdue University Queens College, CUNY Rochester Institute of Technology Spelman College St. John’s University Stony Brook University, SUNY SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry SUNY Geneseo SUNY Maritime College SUNY New Paltz SUNY Oswego

SUNY Polytechnic Institute Swarthmore College Syracuse University Temple University University at Albany, SUNY University at Buffalo, SUNY University of Connecticut University of Kentucky University of Massachusetts Amherst University of Rochester University of Southern California University of Virginia University of Wisconsin–Madison Vanderbilt University Vassar College Wesleyan University Xavier University Yale University

Then: Oh, how time flies! Students seen here at BEAM 7 in 2013 are going off to college next year!

And now: Aisha, Malachi, Will, Vielka, Henry, Eli, Ariel, Tanasia, and Aishat proudly show off their college t-shirts.

Congratulations!  We are so proud of you all!

BEAM's Newsletter is Here!

Earlier this week, BEAM's quarterly newsletter arrived in the inboxes of all our subscribers! The newsletter featured:

• Student quotes about the joy of math
• Job opportunities at BEAM (both full-time and part-time)
• "What We're Reading"
• High school outcomes for our 8th graders
• Updates on BEAM Los Angeles
• Congratulations to our own Dan Zaharopol

Missed the newsletter?  You can always read it online.  And make sure you don't miss the next one!  Sign up for our mailing list. 

BEAM High School Students Focus on College

What is college really like? How much work is it, and can you have fun while still doing well academically? On Saturday, March 10, BEAM high school students spent the day focusing on college: the experience, the application process, and the next steps for each student. During the morning, five former BEAM 6 and 7 camp counselors spoke about their college experiences. Raul, Oksana, Marquia, John, and Rachel shared from their time at MIT, City College, SUNY Oswego, Fordham, and Bard College.

They addressed the challenges of being students of color on predominately white campuses. "Often in class I will get an attitude, like 'You don't get an opinion because you're Black'" said John. "You have to get used to being the only person of color in classes." Marquia shared that even though the student body at Oswego was more diverse, there was still little diversity among the faculty. In contrast, Oksana enjoyed the great diversity at City College, but she faced other challenges. "Because my high school did not prepare me well, I noticed that I had to work harder than other students. I had to put my best foot forward."

In the afternoon BEAM students focused on the college admissions process. They played the role of admissions officers, selecting only two out five applicants to admit. This led into a discussion of what steps they could take now to better prepare themselves for college. The day ended with breakout groups by grade, with specific advice for 9th, 10th, and 11th grade students. The 11th grade students also heard from current BEAM 12th graders about how college admissions went for them.

Congratulations, 8th graders!

This month, BEAM students found out where they will be attending high school.  We are pleased to announce that, so far, 40% of our 8th graders have been admitted to highly selective high schools and 62% have been admitted to selective high schools.  At this point, 89% will be attending "trusted" schools, which meet BEAM's minimum standards for college preparation. We say "at this point" because every year a few students are undermatched in the process. We are currently working with students who were not admitted to high schools that meet our standards to make sure that they can navigate the appeals process and find a good fit for the next four years.

BEAM students were admitted to: 

• Bard High School Early College (15)
• Manhattan Center for Science and Mathematics (15)
• Stuyvesant (3)
• Bronx Science (3)
• Brooklyn Tech (3)
• The Beacon School (3)
• Collegiate Institute For Math And Science (3)
• Brooklyn Latin (2)
• NEST+m (2)
• Leon M. Goldstein High School for the Sciences (2)
• Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) (2)
• Loomis Chaffee
• Poly Prep
• High School for Math, Science and Engineering at City College
• High School of American Studies at Lehman College
• Manhattan/Hunter Science High School
• Midwood High School
• Millennium High School
• Millennium Brooklyn High School
• Manhattan Village Academy
• Medgar Evers College Preparatory School
• University Heights High School
• Academy for Software Engineering 
• Bronx Academy for Software Engineering 
• Hostos-Lincoln Academy of Science
• Urban Assembly Maker Academy

These 82 8th graders join 300+ BEAM students already in high school. We're so proud of you all!

The Joy of Math

“Everything was just amazing... I learned to love math’s beauty.”

— Andy, 12th grade, Bronx Science, speaking about his experience at BEAM in summer 2013

Think back to 7th grade: what did you know or think about math? Each year, we ask graduates of BEAM 7 to talk about their three weeks with us on a college campus, doing math. One of the most interesting questions is: "What is math to you?"  Here are a few of our favorite answers from over the years!

"Math is thinking and trying your best. Math is everything."

-- Aishat, now in 12th grade, has been admitted to Yale, Pomona, Wesleyan, Swarthmore, Vassar, Macalaster, UVA, and SUNY Geneseo, and has decided to attend Yale. She has also been awarded the prestigious Jack Kent Cooke College Scholarship. 

"It is not just numbers and a bunch of variables; it's something that actually is fun and exciting."

-- Aleks, now in 12th grade, has been admitted to Syracuse, St. John's Penn State, and four campuses of the City University of New York (CUNY). She will be attending St. John's. 

" A way I can express my thoughts and talk with and engage in fun arguments with my friends."

-- Alex, now in 9th grade, attends the Cate School on full scholarship. 

"Math is the ability to understand the world around you using numbers and ideas."

-- Camila, now in 8th grade, has been admitted to Bard High School Early College. She is also a Jack Kent Cooke Young Scholar. 

"My favorite subject. The structure of building and thinking."

-- Edgar, now in 8th grade, has been admitted to both Brooklyn Latin and Bard High School Early College. 

"The best subject in the world and the most interesting one."

-- Eli, now in 12th grade, has been admitted to Howard, SUNY Binghamton, UConn, University of Kentucky, Syracuse, College of Staten Island, and Lehman College, and will be attending Howard, planning to study engineering. They were also a Questbridge College Prep Scholar. They have worked as a Junior Counselor at BEAM 6, an Algebra TA for our 8th grade class, and a math team coach for two middle school teams. 

"Math is life. Math is a book that never ends and you want to keep learning about."

-- Pamela, now in 12th grade, will be attending Smith College in the fall. She was also a Questbridge National College Match Finalist. 

"Math is something that you can learn that will open up doors to new opportunities."

-- Zeñia, now in 11th grade, attends St. Mark's School. After three summers at the Center for Talented Youth (CTY), this summer she will attend Cooper Union's Summer STEM Program on a full scholarship. 

Finally, we want to take a second to call out Lismary's quote (below). Lismary, who goes by "L" after her favorite anime character, is currently in 8th grade. She attended BEAM 6 and then BEAM 7, where she fell in love in math. Next year, she will attend Bard High School Early College. She currently aims to get a PhD in number theory and to go on to become a professor of mathematics. 

Here's what she had to say:

"Math is an amazing collection of curiosity, conjectures, and theorems. It's the language of the universe. It's something that brings us together. I want to study math because I know that I will always have questions about the universe. I want to be part of a team of mathematicians who answer those questions."

BEAM 8th Grade Visits Hudson River Trading

On Wednesday, February 21, 13 BEAM 8th grade students had the chance to visit Hudson River Trading's (HRT) Manhattan office. The afternoon began with a pizza lunch, and a chance to talk with HRT employees about their work. 

Afterwards, BEAM students heard from an employee panel about their experiences working at HRT. They also saw a demonstration of using math and programming together to calculate the Fibonacci series. Three different ways of calculating the series resulted in drastically different computational times.

After the presentation, the students toured the office, including the gym and playroom, and took pictures on the terrace overlooking the Hudson. Everyone enjoyed the warm weather and great views! The day ended with games in the playroom and some awesome HRT swag. Afterwards, Porter said "It was cool!" "The had great views, and it was fun," said L.

BEAM would like to thank everyone at HRT for organizing and hosting an amazing trip. 

Center for Talented Youth Admissions Results

On Saturday, December 16, 25 BEAM students took the admissions test for the Center for Talented Youth (CTY).  CTY offers students three-week summer programs in math, science, English, and humanities, provided they score well either the math or verbal section of an admissions exam (the SCAT). 

This week, we found out that a 18 students passed the test, qualifying to take either math or verbal courses, or both!  Next summer, they could take courses ranging from Discrete Math to Astronomy to Philosophy.  CTY's summer programs normally cost about $4000, but their exemplary financial aid means that the median BEAM student pays only $100 to attend. 

Congratulations to Jordan, Mariwa, Consuelo, Awa, Yeramis, Mohamed, Anthony, Noe, Emyr and 9 other students who have opened a door to the next opportunity!  We are so proud of you all.

Winter Party 2017: Ugly Sweater Edition

As 2017 comes to an end, BEAM really appreciates the moments we spend with our students before another year begins. Each year, we invite all BEAM alumni to a Winter/Holiday party where students get to mix and mingle, listen to music, play board games, take pictures and enjoy some food. This year we made our party an Ugly Sweater Party with a competition judged by BEAM students. Take a look at the Ugliest sweaters you can imagine!

Semi-finalists for the Ugly Sweater Competition were: Luz, Elijah, Michelle, Mariam, Deja, Vielka and Thays.
The top three finalists were: Michelle, Mariam and Thays.
And the winner was: Thays -- with her "Merry Chris-MATH" sweater! All students took home BEAM swag as prizes. 

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In addition to the Ugly Sweater segment of our party, students played games like: Set, Dominion, Settlers of Catan, Swish and Uno. They also took a stab at solving some logic and math puzzles and received cool BEAM swag if they solved them. Students took fun holiday pictures at the photo booth and enjoyed some yummy Chinese food. Overall, it was a great afternoon spent with some awesome teenagers! Check out some great moments below!

BEAM LA Hosts a Math Competition

On Saturday, December 2nd, BEAM LA hosted a math competition at the University of Southern California (USC) for partner middle school students. Forty students from grades 6-8 participated in a group round and individual round, solving puzzly math problems alongside their peers. 

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The students were deeply engaged in the problems; some students continued working on the problems during lunch and break time, even after submitting their answers! Here's what some students had to say:

-Abraham, 6th grader

-Ava, 6th grader

Isabella, 7th grader

There were two problems in the individual round that stumped all the participants. Can you solve one? 

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How many whole numbers from 100 to 999 (including 100 and 999) have no two digits next to each other that are the same? (For example, 121 is good, but 322 and 112 are not). 

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Pictured below are the top 2 performers from each grade level. The top winning teams were from UCLA CS and Synergy Kinetic. 

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A big thanks goes to: all of our participating schools and students, the USC Math Department and Viterbi School EOP for sponsoring the event, and MATHCOUNTS and The Art of Problem Solving for allowing us to use their problems in the competition.

Fatimatou speaks about her high school/college experience

Fatimatou attended BEAM 7 in the summer of 2011, as part of BEAM's very first cohort. Six years later she's a sophomore at Manhattan College with a Dean's scholarship, planning on attending medical school. On Saturday, December 2, she came to speak to BEAM's current 9th and 10th grade students about her experience in high school and college.

Fatimatou, Diamond, and Ilearys at BEAM in the summer of 2011

Fatimatou attended the Bronx Academy of Health Careers for high school, and says that it did not prepare her for college. "Since I had taken Algebra I before high school, I started with geometry. But once I finished Algebra II, I was taking the same math class every year because they didn't have anything more."

Since her high school offered limited classes, Fatimatou took advantage of every extra-curricular she could, including College Now and a summer program in math at Texas State University.

Starting college was a difficult transition, even with her extracurricular work. "In high school, I would start assignments the day they were due, or the day before, and get a good grade. In college, that doesn't work." Her advice? "Write down your assignments in a calendar, and give yourself early deadlines. Always know something about the topic before you go to class, even if that's from watching a YouTube video. Don't be afraid to ask for help. Go to your professor's office hours."

Fatimatou speaking to BEAM's students on Dec. 2, 2017

BEAM's high school students had questions about balancing work and a social life, paying for school, and college admissions. Fatimatou's perspective was extremely helpful, because of all the challenges she faced. BEAM hopes the Saturday program helps our current 9th and 10th grade students have an even smoother transition to college!