She’s New York’s Brightest.
A remarkable Washington Heights teenager was accepted to all eight Ivy League schools — along with all 20 other colleges and universities she applied to.
“When I was about to open [an admissions] letter, I would prepare myself for it to be the first rejection letter. And then I would open them and it would always say, ‘Congratulations on being accepted!’” said Malena Galletto, who graduated from Bronx Science High School in June. “I was not expecting to be accepted everywhere.”
Galletto, 17, finished up at the ultra-competitive school with a 97% GPA. She will be the first in her family to go to college.
“For as long as I can remember, school has always been my number one priority. Even in elementary school, I remember always wanting to be at the top of my class,” she said, crediting her parents, both of whom teach tango and immigrated from their native Argentina to Washington Heights in 2000. They instilled in her that “education was the most important thing,” she added.
At Bronx Science, Galletto took a mind-bending 11 Advanced Placement classes, captained the prestigious school’s Speech and Debate Club, founded a student-led group devoted to gender equality, served as secretary of the Senior Council, and more.
“Malena is a guiding light on the true meaning of the American dream,” said Frances Kweller, who founded tutoring company Kweller Prep and has worked with Galletto since she was in sixth grade.
The high achiever estimated she spent around 200 hours writing 70 supplemental essays for college applications, along with countless hours studying for the SAT, on which she scored a 1560 out of 1600.
The fees for all of Galletto’s college applications — which ranged from $50-$85 each — were waived through a College Board financial program, she explained.
Her first acceptance email came in December – a ‘Yes’ from the University of Albany.
“I was like, ‘Yes, I’m going to college!” Galletto recalled.
Acceptances kept rolling in from colleges across the country, including The University of Michigan, New York and Columbia universities, Boston and Georgetown universities, Barnard and Vassar colleges, and more.
But Galletto held her breath until March 28, the day when all eight Ivy League colleges emailed prospective students to say if they’d been accepted or rejected.
“The first one I opened was from Cornell [University], and when that was a ‘Yes,’ it was life changing…But when I opened Harvard [University], I was absolutely screaming,” Galletto said.
“Deep down, it was always Harvard for me,” said Galletto, who won’t be taking it easy in Cambridge, Mass., where she plans to double major in government and physics.
“I’m very excited. I can’t wait,” she said.
Mom Karina Romero never doubted her daughter’s ability to accomplish her goals.
“I am so incredibly proud. She’s always studying and doing her very best, and I’m so happy she got what she worked so hard to achieve,” Romero gushed.
City Department of Education spokeswoman Nicole Brownstein called her 28 college acceptances a “testament to her hard work and dedication.”
