Jerome O’Grady was born and raised on the humble streets of East Boston, Massachusetts to parents James O’Grady and Sherri Schwaninger. Jerome now splits residency in East Boston with his father and younger brother, Declan, and in Jamaica Plain with his mother and brother. Jerome has spent his entire educational career in public schools from the Samuel Adams Elementary School to the Umana Barnes Middle School. In 2001 Jerome was accepted into Boston Latin School as a sixie, becoming a second generation attendee.
During his stay at the Latin School, Jerome has kept up his academics while not letting the severity of the school weigh him down. Outside of classes, Jerome is a staff writer for the Argo and a member of Project Book Net. Jerome will forever appreciate his time at Boston Latin surprisingly not for reading Jane Eyre but rather for the experience of dealing with hard work and pressure. Jerome is looking for to his senior year as both a challenge to his work capacity and the closing of a moment in his life. Although his future is still cloudy, Jerome’s time at BLS shall surely benefit him throughout his life. After Jerome’s time with the Ward Fellowship, he is considering a future in politics and majoring in political science in college. Jerome is planning on staying relatively local and applying to the University of Pennsylvania, Boston College, and Boston University.
Outside of school, Jerome participated in the Junior Achievement business program at Boston College and has been playing bass in a jam band at the Community Music Center of Boston for three years. In his free time, Jerome also enjoys cooking, playing handball, film, and appreciating the works of Ernest Hemingway.
Jerome was approached by his guidance counselor about applying for the Ward Fellowship due to his love of history. Jerome thanks Ms. Sylvester and fate for giving him this opportunity which has given him clarity about his future plans. Jerome’s time at the Children’s Advocacy Center and the District Attorney’s office has opened his eyes to the world of government and public service. The experience Jerome has had with the Ward Fellowship has given him new enthusiasm for helping people and maintaining the government which has given him so many opportunities.
Jerome’s sponsor this summer is the District Attorney Daniel Conley.