Roselle D. Calvo, 21, majored in finance and accounting at NYU’s Stern School of Business, which is ranked as one of the top five business schools in the U.S., and whose alumni include former Federal Reserve Chief Alan Greenspan, hedge fund manager John Paulson, and shoe designer Salvatore Ferragamo.
A frequent contributor to the Marianas Variety’s op-ed page, Calvo served two terms as CNMI youth senator and is credited for launching a reading program during her time with the Youth Congress.
She also coordinated an SAT preparatory event and spent much of her time volunteering for community activities.
During her high school years, Calvo topped academic challenge bowls, made it to the CNMI’s MathCounts Top 10 and competed in the National Forensics League events.
Her mother, Maryann D. Calvo, said she is very proud of her daughter’s accomplishments.
“Since birth, Roselle has always been the kind of person who would march to the beat of her own drum. Roselle was fine being the black sheep of the crowd she was a part of because to her it was an honor to be distinguished. Even among her sisters, Roselle wanted to be different and was a tomboy as a little girl. As time passed, Roselle started to set her sights on being distinguished among her peers and her community,” Mrs. Calvo told the Variety.
She went to New York last week to attend her daughter’s graduation.
Roselle Calvo joined Ernst & Young even before her graduation on May 12.
Mrs. Calvo said this shows that someone from the Northern Marianas could compete with U.S. students.
“This past November 2009, Roselle was awarded a contract from Ernst & Young, LLP’s New York headquarters in Times Square to join their accounting practice upon graduation. While the typical graduate has to struggle post-graduation to find a job or typically signs their contract after receiving their degree, Roselle was awarded her contract almost an entire school year before graduating,” her mother said.
Mrs. Calvo said her daughter’s story is rich with lessons.
“First, it is a good thing to be different from those around you. It is those who are different who stand out among the crowd, socially or academically. Second, do not settle for being average or mediocre. Instead, strive to play with the best and be the best. If you give your best everyday and in everything you do, you will get better at it and be better than others eventually. Third, challenges make you stronger, not weaker, depending on which route you take in dealing with them. Most importantly, don’t be afraid to have big dreams, go to big cities, or accomplish big things,” she said.
Mrs. Calvo noted, however, that the CNMI Scholarship Board has yet to act on the case that her daughter won.
“Our only disappointment is the pending resolution of her scholarship case. Even though the Supreme Court ruling was issued since last summer, the board is still postponing action on the matter. New York University, a much more competitive applicant pool, awarded Roselle a merit scholarship for these few years that is, in fact, much larger than the CNMI’s honors scholarship and testimony to her exceptional academic standing,” Mrs. Calvo said.
Roselle D. Calvo sued the scholarship board for failing to use the proper criteria in the selection process for the honor scholarship award.
She wasn’t selected for the honor scholarship award despite complying with the requirements.
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