ASMS CELEBRATES 30TH ANNIVERSARY AND COMMEMORATES ANN BEDSOLE DAY IN HONOR OF SCHOOL FOUNDER’S CONTRIBUTIONS TO STUDENTS
Mobile, Ala. – At a time when Alabama’s leaders are strategizing for the future of education in our state, one public high school is celebrating its proven history of state-wide success.
The Alabama School of Mathematics and Science is celebrating 30 years of graduates and naming a day in honor of their school founder – Ann Bedsole Day. The school gathered for a lunch in their gymnasium with students, faculty, staff, alumni, board members, past school leadership, state leaders, and even Governor Kay Ivey and Mayor Sandy Stimpson.
“I am pleased to announce that today and every future Ann Bedsole Day at ASMS, we will award one leader of our school community with an honorary diploma and name them as an honorary graduate of our school with an official ASMS graduation stole. Today's recipient is Ms. Ann Bedsole,” said school president, Dr. John Hoyle, during the lunch.
In addition to awarding Ms. Bedsole with an honorary ASMS diploma, the celebration featured a keynote speech from Governor Ivey, several student speakers who shared about their ASMS experience, and even a surprise awards presentation for two students who completed graduate-level research work at the school this year. Mayor Stimpson also honored Ms. Bedsole with the Exceptional Citizenship Award. She is one of just 6 recipients to receive this recognition from the mayor.
“ASMS is a result of local Mobile leaders with a state-wide mindset,” says the school’s Vice President of Development and Outreach, Dr. Samantha Church. “For 30 years, ASMS has recruited and educated 10th – 12th graders from all 67 counties by providing them with a tuition-free advanced STEM education. Today, we are so proud that our nearly 3000 graduates have made good on the mission Ms. Bedsole and other leaders set for the school all those years ago,” shares Church.
The school reports that ASMS has become a turbo-charged STEM pipeline helping to retain top talent in Alabama with 75% of ASMS graduates going to college in state, 65% of ASMS graduates working in state, and 2/3 of ASMS alumni leading in STEM fields.
According to the school’s Academic Dean, Dr. Mitch Frye, ASMS students gain access to over 200+ advanced courses at the school and have the ability to forge their own academic path. Students’ ACT scores improve on average 5-7 points from when they enroll at ASMS to when they graduate from the school with the average ACT score for an ASMS graduate being a 30. (The state average is 19.) Frye notes, “We offer academic opportunities not available anywhere else in Alabama. Students come to ASMS at all different levels of preparedness, and we have a proven track record of positively changing both their educational and career outcomes for a lifetime.”
Although ASMS is located in Mobile, it serves students from the Gulf Coast to the rural Black Belt to the Capitol City all the way to the Shoals. This is possible because the 250 enrolled students live together on the school’s campus in historic Midtown Mobile from August through May. In addition to coursework, students gain access to unique experiential learning opportunities which set them apart in the college admissions process – the ASMS Research Fellows Program, Jo Bonner Leadership Academy, Special Projects Week, and more.
When asked about the day being named in her honor, Ms. Bedsole said this: “People are asking about what works for education in Alabama. I’ll tell you what works. The Alabama School of Math and Science. The school has been doing a good job for 30 years, but sometimes when you do a good job, people forget about you. It is my greatest hope that Alabama will remember ASMS in big ways going forward. We should be very proud to have this school in our state. I know I am.”
One current ASMS junior, Lex Mroczko, calls ASMS “the school of dreams.” “There are too many opportunities to count, an experience for a lifetime, and a place to find yourself and feel at home,” says Mroczko.
If ASMS is a “school of dreams,” one can only dream of what the school might do for Alabama in its next 30 years.
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The Alabama School of Mathematics and Science is the state's only fully public and residential high school for sophomores, juniors, and seniors seeking advanced studies in math, science, computer science, and the humanities. ASMS is a research-focused learning community committed to innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration, and diversity with an aim to empower motivated Alabama students to improve their community, state, and nation. Tuition, room, and board are free. Learn more at asms.net