Oxford Valedictorian is Yale Bound

On the first day of freshman year, Oxford High School student James Badas went home from school and started researching what it would take to get into Yale University.

He looked at the incredible standardized test scores, the high grade point averages and the extracurricular activities that the Ivy League school demands. Undaunted, he immediately made it his goal to be the top student in his class and get into Yale. 

Four years later, after long days of class and sports followed by long nights of studying, both of his dreams have been realized. Badas, 17, delivered the speech as the school’s valedictorian Friday night, and in the fall, he will head off to Yale.

“I definitely feel like Oxford has prepared me,” he said. “The teachers have helped me so much; any time I needed help or needed to talk to them about something, they have always been there.”

Going into his senior year, Badas had a weighted grade average of 105. He got a 2,200 out of a possible 2,400 on the SAT and a 34 out of 36 on the ACT. At OHS, he took the top class in every subject area, including honors courses and advanced placement classes.

He was captain of the basketball team, a starting outfielder on this year’s state championship baseball team and played soccer this past season “to challenge (himself).”

He has also been co-president of the student council, secretary of the National Honor Society, and a member and officer of the school’s Future Business Leaders of America program and Spanish Honor Society.

Badas, who has volunteered in the community in several capacities, started the school’s mock trial club as part of his Capstone project this year. He has also participated in the school band, the World Cultures Club and has tutored other students for the past two years, primarily in Spanish. He was a three-time medalist and Oxford’s first student to place at the CT COLT Foreign Language Poetry Contest, competing in the Modern Greek Native Speaker division.

His Greek heritage – Badas is of 100 percent Greek descent - is something of which he is extremely proud. His mother, Effie, emigrated to the United States in 1977 with two outfits and $5 in her pocket. She spoke very few words of English and knew little about the United States.

“I knew of two, maybe three colleges, and of course, Yale was one of them,” she said. “I thought to myself, ‘Imagine how smart you have to be to go to school there.’”

Over the years, relatives visiting from Greece would give James a few bucks and tell him to put it toward his Yale education, she said. 

Effie and her husband, Ernie, own Heav’nly Donuts in Derby. James said he learned hard work and dedication from his parents, who work tirelessly to provide for their family.

When James discussed college with a customer recently, the customer told him how lucky he was to see his parents’ work ethic.

"I will continue to work hard because I don't want to ruin what they have worked so hard for," James said. 

James told his parents last year he might be the number one student in the class, meaning he could get free tuition to the University of Connecticut.

“He brought that to our attention thinking that he would help save us some money,” Ernie said. “I told him ‘Yale has been your dream and if you get in, that’s where you should go. We’ll do whatever it takes.’”

In college, James plans to major in the Ethics, Politics and Economics program, as well as English. He plans to write for the Yale Daily News and possibly try to walk on to the baseball team. He plans to attend law school and possibly go into sports law. 

Corey Evans, an English teacher at OHS and Badas’ favorite, says she has little doubt he will succeed no matter where he goes or what he does. 

“He’s insightful, intelligent, diplomatic, full of integrity and also, very well grounded,” she said. “He is truly unique in every way. He cares about everyone and everything. And he’s an individual, he’s bright, he’s curious, and he wants to learn for learning's sake.”

She said he might be challenged at Yale not so much by the academics but by the culture.

“I think he is a lot more grounded than many Yale students,” she said. “So he might need a little patience at first to find his niche. But I think he will end up being sort of an inspiration for others to maybe step down a little bit and say, ‘Hey, I have the academics going for me, now maybe I can be a little more well-rounded.’”

That has never been a problem for Badas, who is respected by his teachers, coaches and peers, said basketball coach Al Tolomeo.

"James was picked captain not because of his basketball abilities, but because he's someone whom people listened to when he talked," he said. "He's not a screamer, he's not a rah-rah guy. He's got a quiet demeanor, but people follow him because he leads by example."

When Effie Badas hears such descriptions of her son, she beams with pride. She's proud that she never gave up on her own dreams, the biggest of which for a parent is for your children to succeed. 

"As long I live, I will be happy with the opportunities my family has been given," she said. "I will always say America is the land of opportunity."