Straight-A student parlays high school success into scholarships

Note: The Class of 2007 is an annual feature in which local high schools nominate students whom they feel have been particularly outstanding, for recognition.
by Mary Helen Sprecher
newsroom@baltimoreguide.com

Integrity is a word that gets kicked around a lot. But according to Roger Shaw, principal at Dunbar High School, it’s particularly demonstrated by one student — Dalonte Keemer.

“What impresses me most about Dalonte is his integrity,” said Shaw. “He’s been in situations where he has to demonstrate that. He is just really focused on his goals in life.”

In the teenage years, when peer pressure is an overwhelming force and where following the herd is not just expected, but acceptable, Keemer stands out. But that’s just a part of who he is.

“You have to (have integrity),” said Keemer. “It’s really the only way you can be, the only way to keep yourself safe. You keep your mind strong and you challenge yourself. Sometimes my friends get mad at me, but I can’t help it — that’s just who I am. I don’t follow the crowd.”

Keemer will make another path of his own next fall — to Purdue University, where he plans to study industrial design. Eventually, he’d like to obtain a master’s degree in visual communication, and become a graphic designer, working on animation for video games.

Right now, he’s focused on final exams and on graduation from Dunbar, but that hasn’t stopped him from thinking about the future. Not much stops him from doing that.

“When I start working, I don’t stop. I get everything done before it’s due. There’s always people running around, going, ‘Have you done your paper? Have you done that project?’ I’m saying, ‘I did it three weeks ago.’”

That would account for his grades — he is a straight-A student.

“I might get a B every once in a while, but I get it right back up to an A.”

That dedication won him the Johns Hopkins Medicine Corporate Security Anthony McKnight Scholarship, a $3,000 per year grant for all four years of college. He has also received funding from from organizations including Black Professional Men, Anthony Jordan and the American Student Fund.

Going to school at Purdue will hold new challenges for him, including living on campus and being without his family, including his mother and stepfather, April and Calvin Conaway, and two younger brothers.

“I’m looking forward to new experiences,” said Keemer. “I like knowing that I’ll be able to start a new identity, not that I have a bad one now, but I’ll be able to start new.”

After classes, he played football, and also worked on the school’s mentoring program. (The mentoring program, he noted, was actually set up only for students who needed extra guidance, but he proposed something different; acting as a mentor himself. He was accepted into the program, and began tutoring and working with other students). He also volunteers his time working as a tutor to elementary school age students.

“I’m really impressed with that young man,” said Roger Shaw, “really impressed with him.”

Keemer believes he also benefited from his involvement in the mentoring program.
“You can learn things and better yourself so you can help to better someone else.”
To relax, he enjoys reading, watching movies and hanging out with friends. But when he’s not there, he’s easy to find — he’s the kid sitting in Patterson Park, gazing at the trees and unwinding.

“It is so peaceful and quiet there. It’s the most peaceful place. I just love watching the trees.”