VALEDICTORIANS ARE THE BEST AND BRIGHTEST OF BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS

• CARMELISSA NORBRUN of Boston Green Academy came to Boston in 2012 after surviving the devastating earthquake in Haiti. Deeply involved with Boston University's Upward Bound and Summer Search, she plans to become a doctor. She'll be the first college student in her family when she attends Gettysburg College.

• LANTHARRA LANGLOIS of Urban Science Academy took five AP courses, served an internship with Brigham and Women's Hospital, joined USA's student leadership council and the National Honor Society. She will be the first in her family to attend college when she goes to Brandeis to study neurobiology. • JHOVANA CORREA MARIN of Boston Adult Technical Academy arrived in Boston four years ago from Colombia. She will attend Pine Manor College and study engineering.

• RONALD

MCCLUSKEY of Dorchester Academy enjoys writing music, reading and computer programming. He plans to become a computer programmer.

• WOODLYNE NEPTUNE of Boston Adult Technical Academy arrived from Haiti just two years ago. She hopes to someday attend medical school and return to serve Haiti. She will attend Bunker Hill Community College. • KAILA GIBSON-OKUNIEFF of Boston Arts Academy has focused on modern dance and ballet techniques with Boston Conservatory. She will attend the Alvin Ailey BFA dance program at Fordham University. • LIZBETH PALERMO of Greater Egleston Community High School will attend Massasoit Community College, where she plans to major in film and media. She hopes to become a film director.

• VY PAN of Boston Community Leadership Academy, a native of South Korea, took part in the Boston Debate League, belongs to the National Honor Society and earned second place at the Boston City Calculus Competition. She plans to study biomedical engineering at Tufts University.

• DALIYAH MIDDLETON of TechBoston Academy was in the Noonan Scholars program at Wheelock College, and was in the Student to Teacher Program. She was captain of the volleyball team and will attend Northeastern University. • CRISTIAN RODRIGUEZ SALAS of English High School came from the Dominican Republic four years ago. He is in the Robotics Club and STEAM Pathfinders, enjoys graphic design, and has taught middle school students how to build robots. He will be the first in his family to attend college when he attends Suffolk University. • JIACHENG “TONY” ZOU of Charlestown High School, a native of China, is in the National Honor Society, took three AP courses and scored 800 on the math SAT. He earned a full scholarship to Williams College.

• RAYCEIRY SANZ of Muriel S. Snowden International School struggled in elementary and middle school but managed to work her way to valedictorian at Snowden. She will be the first in her family to attend college when she goes to Northeastern University.

• JULIANA PEREIRA of Edward M. Kennedy Academy for Health Careers studied math at Wentworth Institute of Technology, attended the Crimson Summer Academy and won first place at the Citywide Science Fair. She'll study pharmaceutical sciences at Northeastern University. • BRENDA HERNANDEZ of Margarita Muniz Academy moved here from Mexico at age 9 and credits SquashBusters for helping her succeed. She will attend the College of the Holy Cross.

• SILVIA YU of John D. O'Bryant School of Mathematics and Science, a K-12 BPS student, was on the tennis and swim teams, and is a junior counselor at the Chinatown Afterschool Program. She will attend Wellesley College.

• MAYBELLINE PEREZ

VILLATORO of East Boston High School, a native of El Salvador, is in the National Honor Society and is a Student Immigrant Movement leader. She will study political science and international affairs at Northeastern University. • DARA SOSTEK of Josiah Quincy Upper School has a passion for creative writing. She will study English and communications at Northeastern University.

• MELISA DEPINA of Dearborn STEM Academy arrived from Cape Verde five years ago, and has already completed four college courses and belongs to the National Honor Society and is a POSSE Scholar. She traveled to New Orleans' Ninth Ward for a weeklong service project and completed a summer internship at State Street Bank. She will attend Union College.

• SACDIO ALI of Brighton High School arrived from Kenya three years ago and has maintained a 5.2 grade point average and serves on the Student Leadership Team. The first in her family to attend college, she will study child development at Tufts University.

• DANIELA BREA BAEZ of the Edward M. Kennedy Academy for Health Careers served in Project Teach at Brigham and Women's Hospital; was a Massachusetts General Hospital Youth Scholar and worked with Tufts Medical School to study the effects of gentrification on the Dominican community of Boston. She will study animal science at UMass Amherst's Commonwealth Honors College. • JAKELIN YASMIN BONILLA of West Roxbury Academy immigrated from El Salvador in elementary school and earned the Mayor's Award for Academic excellence in middle school. She will study psychology at Suffolk University.