Twenty-one of the 41 valedictorians of Boston high schools this school year were born outside of the United States, according to a June 3 article in the Boston Globe. The newspaper has posted a gallery with a photo and short quote from each valedictorian online. Among them is Nagina Khudaynazar, the valedictorian of City on a Hill Charter High School in Boston, who was born in Afghanistan, fled a civil war, and moved to the United States six years ago. “It was really hard for us to start a new life in America, especially not knowing English,” she says in a video, “Plans for Success,” that is linked to the gallery and features nine of the students.
A version of this news article first appeared in the Learning the Language blog.