When one addresses Chelsea High graduate Jocelyn Poste, they wouldn’t be incorrect to call her ‘Madame President,’ yet they could also refer to her as the Salutatorian of the Class of 2019, or for another angle, as the best female athlete of the year.
Or if none of those are of interest, she could certainly be called a passionate community activist.
It’s hard to find one title to pin on Poste, 18, but that is what defines her time at Chelsea High.
This year, Poste was one of the handful of students that fought hard to get the graduation exercises back outside at the Stadium. And even in the face of adversity, they continued.
Poste said it was an experience that will shape her after high school.
“I never really got involved with politics until that happened,” she said. “There were plenty of people who said we couldn’t do it. We kept at it and it worked. I talked with Damali Vidot (Council President) about it and she said we had to come back and take her seat when we’re older. I don’t know if I would get into politics, but I want to be a voice for the people certainly.”
Poste began her career at the Silber ELC and then went to the Kelly School and the Clark Avenue Middle School.
She will attend Union College as a Posse Scholar, meaning she will have a full ride to the New York school as well as a support network. She said she was not sure about going out of state to college at first, but the Posse Scholarship was too good an opportunity to pass up.
There, she will focus on biology so she can pursue her goal of being a dermatologist.
That dream stems from a video that was popular in middle school that went viral. It was called Dr. Pimple Popper and it was something she said pointed her in that direction.
She said she wanted to thank her parents, Steven Poste and Angela Burgos, for supporting her through high school.