Marquise J. McGraw
Hometown:
Bronx, New York
High School:
Bronx H.S. of Science
College:
Cornell University\n
A native of the infamous housing projects of New York's South Bronx, raised in a single-parent home, Marquise McGraw has triumphed over obstacles which included the poverty, drugs, and crime that sidetracked many of his peers. He now aspires to obtain a Ph.D. and to become one of the future shapers of U.S. educational policy. Despite being told by one of his junior high school teachers that his school had not prepared him well enough for the challenges of high school study, Marquise went on to attend the well-known and prestigious Bronx High School of Science. There, he currently ranks in the top five percent of his class. Twice listed in Who's Who Among American High School Students, named a Ventures Scholar, and an All-American Scholar, he is also a recipient of a National Achievement scholarship.
Marquise is extremely committed to the development of the youth in his community, as demonstrated by his work with underprivileged youth at a local school. After only four months there as an assistant teacher of computers, he developed and taught a curriculum for a new and innovative general science class for elementary school children and hoping it would stimulate the students' interest in science at an early age. He is also a Group Leader and a Homework Tutor, responsible for over fifty sixth and eighth grade students.
Marquise developed a PowerPoint presentation on graduation requirements and general college admissions requirements for at-risk NYC middle school students. A member of New York City's 4-H program, he recruited students for and assisted with their College Awareness Program. He also was selected as a delegate for the 2002 New York State Conversation on Youth Development, where he was a discussion Facilitator. He also was a Student Aide at Bronx Science Summer School 2000. He was looked upon as a "seasoned administrator" who sought out opportunities to better the experience for all the students in the summer program in any way he could.
Marquise did climate research at NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies Institute on Climate and Planets (ICP), and submitted a research paper to the Intel competition. He is currently a member of the selection committee for ICP, responsible for interviewing and selecting new students for the program. He is also in the process of designing a program to introduce younger 4-H students to NASA and the general field of scientific research. In addition, he was formerly the Vice-President of a men's fellowship group and Secretary of the Sunday School at his church, the First Bible Church of the Lord's Mission. Marquise will attend Cornell University in the fall, where he will major in mathematics and/or economics, and pursue research in educational policy.
