Neighborhood News
Perfect SAT Math Scores Cap Year for Horizon Science Academy Juniors
The McKinley Park neighborhood's Horizon Science Academy lauded two of its juniors — William Zamudio and Salih Yatkin — for achieving perfect scores on the math section of the SAT college preparatory exam.
“I like math, and I set my goal on a perfect score," Yatkin said. "I owe my brother Omer this since he set the standard high in our family to be successful."
Yatkin and Zamudio each scored an 800 on their math SATs, making them the first Horizon students to achieve this at the school, which opened in 2013.
Make Impossible Possible
"Both Will and Salih were dedicated to the end goal, which was to make the impossible possible," said Dr. Enes Yilmaz, head of Horizon's math department. “Coming out of the pandemic we knew how hard we were going to have to work to prepare our students for this exam."
“I knew after taking the PSAT [exam] in 9th grade that I needed to get to work to get a perfect score," Zamudio said. "With the amazing support of my family, friends and especially my teachers, I was able to achieve my goal.”
The students spent their Saturdays getting ready for the test, enrolling with other juniors in a free prep program sponsored by the math department and shepherded by math teachers like Meneske Tok.
Eight Months of Prep
Tok said Yatkin and Zamudio started the year from PSAT math scores of 640 and 670, respectively.
"For the past eight months, they have worked very hard to prepare for this test," Tok said. "In the end, their hard work paid off."
"They have shown that any student with dedication can also achieve this outstanding accomplishment,” Tok said.
Yatkin and Zamudio said they plan to parlay their perfect SAT scores into the college selection process as they set their sights on higher education after graduating next year.
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