BBCHS senior Halle Schweizer has been awarded a full-ride scholarship to Williams College, a prestigious liberal arts school in Williamstown, Massachusetts. The scholarship, which covers tuition as well as room and board, is worth $280,000.

    Schweizer received the scholarship through a program called Questbridge, which rewards students from low income families who excel in school and extracurricular activities. “I was super excited. I just feel incredibly thankful to that I have been given the opportunity to pursue this scholarship. And I’m most excited for my mom. To see her be so proud of me was really special,” she said. Out of 14,491 applicants, she was one of only 767 applicants to receive a full scholarship at one of Questbridge’s 38 partner schools. As for why she feels she got selected, she said “I think what probably stood out to them was my writing, because I wrote with a lot of honesty and a lot of passion.”

    A scholarship this valuable is certainly an incredible opportunity, but it could be just the beginning. The university Schweizer will be attending next fall, Williams College, has been ranked the no. 1 liberal arts college in the United States by US News and World Report. Once there she plans on majoring in political science and Spanish, with a concentration in both global development and justice and law in hopes of one day becoming a child advocacy lawyer and helping disadvantaged children. As for other students looking to follow their dreams at their dream school like she is, Schweizer said, “Pursue the opportunities that you never thought you would have, and pursue the goals that you think might be too big. Because I never thought I could get into a school like this, but here I am.”