By JULIE LAM
Alongside with other scholarships, Bobby Madden was awarded the Colby-Sawyer Progressive Scholarship. The Progressive Scholar Program was built for students who owned leadership positions in their high school and community. They are recognized for their devotion to greatness and academic engagements.
Each year, the Progressive Scholar Program awards 20 Progressive Scholars with a full tuition scholarship to attend Colby-Sawyer College. With this scholarship, the Progressive Scholar must maintain a GPA of 2.5 or higher and also demonstrate dedication, character, and strength within the campus community.
This scholarship was a great opportunity for Madden since it eases the financial burden of college for his family. Also, Madden chose this school specifically because Colby-Sawyer held a very strong program in his intended field of study. Once hearing about the scholarship, Madden was advised by his mother to reach out and apply for this scholarship. Along with his mother’s advice, Madden also had friends who attended Colby-Sawyer who believe it was a perfect match for him.
After visiting Colby-Sawyer for the first time, Madden expressed that “[he] really felt at home,” when visiting. Besides the eye-catching campus, Madden knew exactly what he plans on accomplishing while attending at Colby-Sawyer. Madden plans on majoring in exercise science. Alongside his major, he will also be completing the requirements for the pre-med program, which will include additional chemistry and biology. Madden confessed that he loves learning about the human body and how it functions.
The application process was very similar to a regular college application, besides the personal interview with a junior in college, who is also a Progressive Scholar. Madden mentioned, “[Erin] Craven was a huge help in terms of assisting me with getting my application done on time and [Carol] Mastromauro also provided me with an extraordinary recommendation letter.”
Besides his outstanding academic grades, Madden is a part of many different clubs and sports teams within Malden High School. Madden started playing baseball at the age of eight and plans to continue his career while attending Colby-Sawyer College. While juggling baseball and school, Madden is also an active participant in Captains Council, Unified Sports, Helping Hands, and Malden against Cancer.
Throughout his last year at MHS, Madden hopes to “have a positive impact on the MHS community although I just joined the MHS family as a transfer student.” His long term goal includes prospering a professional degree and becoming a physician or physician’s assistant, hoping to specialize in orthopedics.
Through his four years of high school, Madden advises underclassmen to get involved and stay on top of their grades: “you get out of high school what you put into it, make the most out of it.”
