On March 10th, Senior football star Maliek Kelly was presented with the Andrew Barberi award. Andrew Barberi was a Curtis football coach who was known for his great contributions to developing scholastic football on Staten Island. Shortly after his death, the honor along with a $2,000 scholarship is presented to a Staten Island high school senior who has proved his worth on the football field and in the classroom, requirements that Maliek Kelly easily satisfies.

     The  2014 football season was the time to shine for Kelly whether it was carrying his team through obstacles such as the death of teammate Miles Kirkland or leading his team to PSAL city playoffs. These efforts appealed to the scholarship committee, especially Jim McKeon, who not only went to Curtis, but also played and coached Curtis football. A memorable moment that stayed with McKeon as he rooted for the Warriors from the sidelines included Kelly’s determination during the semi-final playoff game against Erasmus Hall. Although the Warriors were defeated by Erasmus 39-22, McKeon quotes that Kelly “never had his head down,” and “just kept fighting.” “It’s a twelve round fight, but somehow in the ninth round he was still throwing punches,” said McKeon. After the football season ended, Kelly carried these efforts into the classroom as he achieved a 96 average as an IB student.

      With his high school career ending with this incredible honor, Kelly is now on to bigger and better things such as attending Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute to continue his football career beginning this fall. “It capped off both my academic and athletic careers with an exclamation point. I am very proud and honored to have been the recipient of this prestigious award.” said Kelly.