MVHS senior excels academically and in extracurriculars, earning college acceptance and scholarship

Dianna Salgado-Sanchez is a Mount Vernon High School senior who has shown great growth and educational success throughout her four years of high school. With a strong 4.0 grade point average, Dianna is finishing high school with pride and confidence in her future. 

Dianna is an International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme student, meaning she takes a full course load of rigorous, accelerated IB classes. Her favorite of these classes is IB Spanish. 

“I have a connection with Ms. Joseph, the teacher of this class,” said Dianna. “I can speak Spanish also, so it's pretty easy.” 

Her highest accomplishment in all four years of high school is being a repeat recipient of the Principal’s Honor Roll. She recently celebrated being distinguished on this list with a GPA of 104, her highest and proudest moment. She described this time as a big breakthrough in her education. 

Dianna is a member of the National Honor Society at MVHS, where she is required to complete a certain amount of community service each year. To fulfill this requirement, Dianna takes time to tutor students in the senior class. This has taught her how to communicate with others. 

“You have to figure out how to word things so others can understand,” said Dianna. 

She is also a participant in Junior Achievement, a program where high school students travel to classes at elementary schools in the District and teach students about financial literacy, how to save money, and how to build credit. 

Dianna was a member of Mock Trial Club at MVHS, where she took turns acting as lawyer and witness. Her times in this club were often her favorite during high school. She got out of her comfort zone and made many memories with her friends. 

Dianna is also a student-athlete. She played on the girls' softball team in her junior year, which was a very different enriching experience for her.

“I learned collaboration and teamwork,” said Dianna. “You have to be connected with your teammates in order to make big accomplishments.” 

Dianna often relishes the fact that all of the rigorous courses she takes now will prepare her for college. She has applied to around 20 schools, including Yale University, Boston College, and New York University. She has been accepted into Le Moyne College with a Dean's scholarship of $22,000 per year.

In university, Dianne plans to study political science, on the pre-law track, with hopes of one day becoming a criminal justice lawyer. 

Dianna is very excited about the future and walking across the stage on graduation day. She has spent her junior and senior years of college getting prepared for this moment, getting out of her comfort zone, meeting new people, and doing unfamiliar things. 

“I am excited for the big change,” said Dianna. “I am looking at colleges that are a bit far from New York, and I think college will provide a big change in my life.”