Hi my name is Imani and I’ve been at the VI Montessori School and Peter Gruber International Academy since 2001. I was three years old then and enrolled in the Montessori Primary Level Program. I am now 17 years old and am happy to announce that I have been honored with the opportunity to start college a year early, beginning this Fall. Due to my exemplar transcript and academic performance, I have been accepted to the Early Enrollment Program at Johnson and Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island.
In my first year at Johnson and Wales University, I will be completing both my senior year of high school plus my first year in college. This is a very rigorous program. While being interviewed, the recruiter asked me how I thought I would be able to manage the intensity of the first year of a combined curriculum. I told him that “at the Peter Gruber International Academy Diploma Program, we are training at a higher level of education and this experience has given me the tools I need to succeed”. It is also because of these tools that I have been awarded $25,000 in scholarship funds for my first year at the university. I received the Presidential Academic Scholarship along with 2 other locally granted awards.
I will be attending the Culinary Arts Program, hoping to master the art and achieve a Bachelors Degree. With the skills that I acquire, I can then return to our lovely island home, with ample professionalism eager to help bring something new to the community.
It is my belief that the true physicians of the world are culinary alchemists. Those who prepare foods that keep the nutritional value at its optimal level, those who combine herbs and spices to help alleviate ailments, and those who simply prepare healthy meals are those who I think are some of the greatest champions in our society. Food is the most intimate experience. We consume it, it becomes a part of us; a part of our molecular composition. As the old adage says… “We are what we eat!”. In today’s society it is very important that we are mindful of what we put inside our bodies. I want to be part of the movement for healthy lifestyles and I strongly believe that food preparation is a major component.
I am so excited to be able to jump start my life and I think that VIMS & PGIA provided both a solid foundation and a wonderful springboard for me to leap and soar into my next journey.
Thank you to all the educators and supporting staff that helped shape my life and inspired and influenced me along the way.
Sincerely,
Imani Sidiropoulos
