Peel board top scholars score 99.7 per cent, graduate from prestigious International Baccalaureate program

More than 3,000 Peel students score 80 per cent or higher

Peel - Four Peel District School Board students have achieved the highest academic averages within the Peel board for the 2006-07 academic year, each student earning 99.7 per cent. In addition to being Ontario Top Scholars, Manan Arya and Tina Park of Brampton's Turner Fenton Secondary School and, Rohan Kothari and Alia Tehreen of  Mississauga's Glenforest Secondary School are also graduates of the International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma program.

Arya achieved a perfect IB diploma—scoring the top mark in each of his courses. "Achieving a perfect diploma in the IB program is a tremendous accomplishment," says Bob Garton, principal at Turner Fenton. "Last year, only 3 per cent of IB grads in the northern hemisphere earned a perfect diploma. With his dedication to learning, Manan is certainly destined for success."

Arya has been accepted into the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Toronto. He attributes his high achievement and success to motivation from his parents. "I wanted to make my parents proud," says Arya. "Their involvement in my education inspired my success."

Park is currently in Korea and in September will attend the University of Toronto to study life sciences. "The language barrier has always has been my biggest obstacle, as English is my second language," says Park. "By joining the IB program, I placed myself in a position that challenged me to work twice as hard to overcome this obstacle. I will continuously try my best to maintain this level of academic achievement as I go through university."

Tehreen, who is currently in Pakistan visiting relatives for the summer, plans to attend McMaster University in September to earn her bachelor's degree in the honours biochemistry program. "My advice to other students would be to work hard in school and it will pay off—never procrastinate because it doesn't allow us to reach our full potential," says Tehreen. "My motivation to succeed came from the happiness and pride that comes with earning good marks. My parents and grandparents were a constant source of support and encouraged me to attain this degree of academic success."

Arya, Kothari, Park and Tehreen are among the Peel board's 3,000 Ontario Top Scholars. Ontario Top Scholars must have an average of 80 per cent or higher in the top six grade 12 university-level courses.

The IB program is a university preparation program offered during the last two years of secondary school. Students enrolled in the IB program are required to study all disciplines and areas of the curriculum, including mathematics, sciences, language and humanities. They must also write a 4,000 word extended essay on topic of individual interest, and complete a community/action/service component, which encourages students to pursue non-academic interests, such as art, sports, volunteer work and community service.

Caledon's top scholar is The Humberview School's Justin Puntillo, who achieved an overall average of 98.2 per cent. In September, Puntillo will attend the University of Guelph's biomedical science program. He also received three scholarships from the university to assist in his studies. 

Below is a full listing of Peel's Ontario Top Scholars by region (Student's Name, Grade, Name of Secondary School):

BRAMPTON

Sarah Farr - 96.3% - Bramalea
Sarah Farrow - 95.0% - Brampton Centennial
Ria Patel - 92.0% - Central Peel
candidate not available - 93.2% - Chinguacousy
Ramya Janandharan - 94.7% - Fletcher's Meadow
Asad Siddiqui - 96.5% - Gordon Graydon
Rajan Gill - 93.5% - Harold M. Brathwaite
Mike Herman - 97.0% - Heartlake
Shannon Erdelyi - 96.7% - Mayfield
candidate not available - 93.8% - North Park
Ashley Hanley - 83.7% - North Peel
Manan Ayra - 99.7% - Turner Fenton
Tina Park - 99.7% - Turner Fenton

CALEDON

Justin Puntillo - 98.2% - The Humberview

MISSISSAUGA

Julia Kolesnik - 95.3% - Applewood Heights
Candidate not available - 95.0% - Cawthra
Katherine Li - 96.7% - Clarkson
Elisha Corrigan - 97.3% - Erindale
Linda Shao - 97.3% - Erindale
Rohan Kothari - 99.7% - Glenforest
Alia Tehreen - 99.7% - Glenforest
Rhys Anderson - 96.2% - John Fraser
Mohit Verma - 95.3% - Lincoln M. Alexander
Resham Ejaz - 96.8% - Lorne Park
Hasanka Attanapola - 97.8% - Meadowvale
Abdel Hamid - 94.2% - Mississauga
Jenny Zeng - 96.5% - Port Credit
Shaan Dhindsa - 94.0% - Rick Hansen
Michael Lin - 93.8% - Streetsville
Kelly Zhu - 95.7% - T.L. Kennedy
Danielle Bertin-Tremplay - 96.2% - West Credit
Aakash Ravi - 97.5% - The Woodlands