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Hard work pays off for Hebron grad
By Senitra Horbrook, shorbrook@acnpapers.com
Carrollton native Alyssa Mayse is the first in her immediate family to go to college and she’s making the most of the opportunity.
“Truly anything is possible,” said Mayse, a freshman at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. “I could not have pictured myself going to a private university. I had the motivation of kicking up my grades a lot with hopes of getting into any university.”
The 2009 Hebron High School graduate finished in the top 25 percent of her class and even had a call from Harvard University asking her to apply.
Mayse’s Hispanic heritage also made her eligible for many honors and awards. She earned the Ronald McDonald Hacer Scholarship, an award for students within the Hispanic community of D/FW who show academic promise and attend a Texas university. She was also named a National Hispanic Scholar, which goes to the top 5 percent of Hispanic students nationally, based on their SAT scores.
On Oct. 19, Mayse was a featured speaker during a Ronald McDonald Hacer college workshop and spoke to students at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas.
“I talked about the importance of being able to attend college and how there are so many opportunities for kids out there, even for kids without a lot of money,” she said.
Mayse is majoring in electrical engineering with a biomedical specialty.
“When I was in sixth grade, my grandmother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s,” she said. “Seeing how it affected my family made me want to help others.”
Mayse is planning on a career in research, helping to bridge the gap between modern day technology and medicine.
“I want to find new ways to use technology and apply it to the medical system,” she said.
She chose SMU for its friendliness and the top notch facilities.
“Every time I went there, everyone I saw was so friendly and outgoing,” she said. “The engineering facilities were so top notch. SMU is truly one of the leading places to be if you want to be at the leading edge of what’s going to happen in Dallas.”
Though only in her freshman year, Mayse said she thinks college offers the opportunity to see everything the world has to offer.
“I also received a scholarship to travel abroad during the summer of my sophomore year,” she said. “It is the opportunity to look so far beyond your backyard and look at the world. I’m still trying to decide where I want to go.”
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