DPSCD’s 2017 Excellence Awards honorees earn shopping spree at Office Depot

Twelve ecstatic students, who graduated in June from Detroit Public Schools Community District high schools, were all smiles recently as they embarked on a $1,000 each shopping spree at Office Depot on Greenfield Rd. in Southfield.  These 12 high school graduates, who will be heading to various colleges this fall, are not your average students, as they all earned straight A’s during their four-year journeys through their respective high schools.
As 2017 DPSCD Excellence Awards honorees, the students were acknowledged recently during in instore ceremony, just before spreading out to pick supplies for their upcoming freshmen year in college.  The 12 honorees, their high schools, and future colleges are, Kasem Almusaisi (Western High School/Schoolcraft College), Rumi Begum (Detroit International Academy for Young Women//Wayne State University), Carlos Estrella (Cass Technical High School/University of Michigan).
Saika Islam (Detroit School of Arts/University of Michigan), Aini-Alem Robertson (Cass Technical High School/University of Michigan), Robin Ryce (Renaissance/University of Michigan), Rejwana Sadia (Detroit International Academy for Young Women/Wayne State University), Iffat Saiyara (Cass Tech/University of Michigan, Triniti Smith (Cass Technical High School/Morgan State University), Tasnim Syed (Cass Technical High School/University of Michigan), Suma Taher (Ben Carson High School of Science and Medicine/University of Michigan), and Alexia White (Detroit School of Arts/Stanford University).
“This shopping spree meant that the four years of effort that I put into high school was greatly recognized and appreciated,” said Robin Ryce, a Renaissance High School graduate who will major in engineering this fall at the University of Michigan.  “The first item I chose was a laptop.  With this laptop, I will have more accessibility to my schoolwork, and get it done more efficiently.”
Ryce explained how she managed to achieve straight A’s for the entire four years at Renaissance.   “I continuously challenged myself,” Ryce said, who also is a recipient of a $5,000 scholarship from the Council of the Great City Schools’ ExxonMobil Bernard Harris Math and Science Scholarship Program.  “I stayed motivated for four years to always achieve above and beyond.”
Now in its fourth year, Office Depot’s shopping spree for straight A’s high school students in DPSCD, is the brainchild of Akoco Grace, the company’s education solutions managers.
“Office Depot is committed to learning,” said Grace.  “We have an education division in school districts around the country.  I felt that it would be great to honor straight-A students who graduated from DPSCD high schools.  Since the inception of Office Depot’s Excellence Awards four years ago, the store’s shopping sprees for straight-A students from DPSCD have totaled $50.000.”
Asked about feedback from honorees, Grace said, “The feedback from students has been tremendous,” she said.  “They are very appreciative of this opportunity, as they prepare to go to their respective colleges all over the country. They are all my babies! ”
Grace added.
“The parents are very happy as well, because in many cases they just don’t have the means to get all the supplies their children need to begin college,” explained Grace.  “So this shopping spree is something that the company feels very strongly about.  We don’t do it to get ourselves on the map, because Office Depot is already on the map.  We do it because we are committed to learning, committed to encouraging students, and committed to seeing students excel in school.”