Meet Our First OAPCS Charter School Student Ambassadors

OAPCS has launched its first student ambassadors program to partner with those who can provide a student voice and represent charter schools throughout the state. The two students named as ambassadors were selected based on academic achievements and community and school involvement. They are Tirie Drummer and Gabriel Gaiusbayode.

The students made their first public appearance at the Ohio Rally for National Charter Schools Week on May 3 at the Statehouse. Tirie Drummer is a junior at Columbus Alternative High School who aspires to a nursing career and service in the Peace Corps after college. She is captain of her school’s cheerleading team and attributes her success in high school to the level of rigor and personalized attention she received at her charter middle school. She attended Columbus Collegiate Academy for 6th, 7th, and 8th grade. During that time, she noted, she received more challenging academic work that prepared her to be successful at one of Columbus’ top public high schools.

Gabriel Gaiusbayode is a student at the Charles School at Ohio Dominican University, part of the Graham family of schools. He is a senior who plans to major in mechanical engineering at the University of Dayton with an art minor. He was reluctant to attend a charter school, but now believes attending his charter school has been one of the greatest decisions he has ever made. He says he is motivated by the struggles he’s endured through life and hopes his story will inspire others. Gabriel’s main focus is to treat success as an action instead of a goal. “Success has to be treated as an action, so every time I get an A on an assignment, every time I pass a class, every time I make a new friend or wake up in the morning to plan my day, I am being successful,” he says. “Because I am given an opportunity to take advantage of something not everyone has and because of this mindset, I will never stop being successful.”

OAPCS welcomes Tirie and Gabriel as student ambassadors and extends thanks to Andrew Boy, founder and chief executive officer of United Schools Network and Hayley Verdi for nominating Tirie and to Ed Ingman, Dean of Academic Affairs at the Charles School, for his support of Gabriel. 

For more information about the student ambassador program, contact Tisha Reynolds, director of membership and development, at treynolds@oapcs.org.