Teduray youth bags 2 Yale degrees
KORONADAL CITY—From the rural area of Maguindanao, a young man from the Teduray indigenous peoples’ community has conquered an Ivy League school in the United States, earning two undergraduate degrees with flying colors.
Last month, Nathan Wayne Ariston, 22, graduated cum laude from prestigious Yale University based in New Haven, Connecticut, with degrees in Physics and Mathematics.
Ariston was also awarded the Howard L. Schultz Prize, which is given to the Yale student who best reflects excellence, inventiveness and good taste in experimental physics.
The award was meant to honor the memory of Schultz, known for his work on atom-smashing devices, who played a key role in developing a linear electron accelerator laboratory at Yale.
The son of a farmer and a local public school teacher, Ariston first studied at Nuro Elementary School in his mountainous hometown Upi in Maguindanao del Norte province, some 35 kilometers from Cotabato City, the seat of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region.
His interest in science was honed at the Philippine Science High School (PSHS)-Central Mindanao Campus in Baloi town, Lanao del Norte, where he finished secondary school in 2021.
Ariston is the first alumnus of his school to have been accepted and graduated from Yale with such academic distinction on a full scholarship.
From Pisay to Yale
“(From) Pisay to Ivy League: Nathan Ariston makes history at Yale,” the PSHS System, popularly known as Pisay, proudly announced in a statement.
“Congratulations, Nathan! Your Pisay family is beyond proud. May your journey continue to inspire young minds to dream bigger than their circumstances and rise beyond every challenge,” it said.
“All praises and thanksgiving to God for Wayne’s graduation from Yale University! Feeling so happy and proud —to be at Yale is already a blessing from the Lord, and to receive an award is truly His favor and grace,” Ariston’s mother, Aimee, posted on Facebook.
“Erwin (Wayne’s father), me and Gwen (Wayne’s sister) are grateful beyond words for God’s guidance. We thank our family (titos, titas, cousins, friends) for the love, support, and prayers throughout this journey,” added Aimee, who attended the graduation rites last May 19.
After he graduated from PSHS in 2021, Ariston also received admission offers from Georgia Institute of Technology (US), University of California-Irvine (US) and Nanyang Technological University (Singapore). But he chose Yale University and its scholarship.
Ariston credited Pisay for his academic achievement and proudly admitted his Teduray roots: “I am prouder of where I came from than my academic achievements. I am proud of my ethnic identity.”
