Saint Peter Public Schools

Saint Peter High School senior Isam Ibrahim, the son of Hanna Haji of St. Peter has more than enjoyed his time at SPHS. He has taken full advantage of all the opportunities presented to him and even when there didn’t appear to be an opportunity he helped create his own path.

Ibrahim, whose shared interest in science and space, including model rockets, sparked him and fellow enthusiast Logan Pherson to start up SPHS’s very own Aerospace Club. This was just one way that his initiative played a role in his academic success which was rewarded on Friday evening when he received his SPHS diploma along with the rest of his senior classmates.

From here, Ibrahim has set his academic goals high as he will attend MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) as a member of that prestigious institution’s freshman class starting this fall where he plans to major in electrical engineering and computer science. It’s the culmination of an academic journey that began in St. Peter during his fourth grade year when his mother moved him and his sibling here.

“This whole process of going from Saint Peter High School to MIT has been tough at times and a little stressful, but I can’t thank the teachers here (SPHS) enough for helping me get to this point,” Ibrahim said. “To Dr. (Aaron) Dimock, our advisor for the Aerospace Club, who was instrumental in so many ways including helping find the ability to stay humble and keep me grounded. To Mrs. Roehrkasse who helped me develop my passion for STEM and more specifically through physics and chemistry classes. To Mr. Robinson, who was a big help in helping me enhance my engineering skills, and to every single math teacher here who were all so practical and easy to learn from during my time here and encouraged me to be inquisitive and progressive in class. I also have to give thanks to my friend group here at SPHS who have been very inspirational and so supportive of me. 

“It is my wish for young people with similar backgrounds like mine to realize that they, too, can aspire to do great things even coming from a smaller town like St. Peter. We have very good teachers here and a great learning environment, and I hope others will find inspiration from my journey.”

Ibrahim knows getting accepted into MIT is just a part of his continued journey, and knows he will be attending classes there with some of the best and brightest not only in this country but from around the world.

“I’m going there with an open mind with the goals of gaining new skills and knowledge, and meeting new people to help me facilitate a new life,” he said. “My immediate plans are to enjoy my summer here with my friends, but I am also excited about what lies ahead at MIT, and if I can better the world around me in even the tiniest of degrees I will be happy.”