The Birmingham Times
Kylan Benson has successfully navigated his high school career at Ramsay IB High School with a 4.5 GPA, a 31 on the ACT and an exhaustive list of academic and civic honors. That dedication has allowed him to amass more than $3 million in scholarships from more than a dozen of the nation’s top Ivy League and post-secondary institutions.
On Wednesday, Benson announced he plans to attend Harvard University.
“Getting accepted into Ivy League schools like Harvard and Yale has been a wonderful feeling, especially because they are very selective. After working hard in school for so many years, it’s good to see the fruits of my labor. In the past few years, I’ve been able to see some of my peers at Ramsay get accepted into these types of schools, and they all inspired me to want to do the same,” said Benson, Ramsay’s 2022 Valedictorian.
In addition to excelling academically at Ramsay, Kylan Benson has served in several leadership roles including co-captain of the SpeakFirst Debate Team, president of the Youth in Government Club, Senior Class President and others. He was also an inaugural intern at Prosper through the Birmingham Education Foundation, and received the support of College Choice Foundation to help in his higher ed pursuit.
“I’ve been grateful to have the help of the College Choice Foundation, a local nonprofit that guides scholars through the admissions process. I’ve been able to visit most of the schools I’ve applied to, which gives me confidence that whichever school I choose will be a great fit for me,” he said.
Kylan said hopes to carry the foundation he received at Ramsay forward with him into the future. “I came to Ramsay because of the rigorous and internationally recognized IB program. Being an IB scholar helped me stand out as a I applied for college admission. The IB program stresses being a global-minded citizen, and this has deepened my passion for serving the world. I’m not quite sure exactly what I want to do in the future, but I’ve been considering politics, foreign service, or even non-profit work. Anything that gives me the influence to positively impact others gives me personal fulfillment,” he said.
