Students from Dorchester High School's Academy of Public Service traveled far from their troubled high school last Friday to learn about career choices at the John F. Kennedy School of Government's annual Public Service Conference.

The Conference is part of a partnership between the Kennedy School's Office of Community and Public Service, its Black and Latino Caucuses and Dorchester High School, which has drawn criticism recently for its low graduation rates and test scores.

At the event, students in Dorchester's selective Academy of Public Service (APS) attended panels and discussed topics ranging from the college experience to service-oriented careers to affirmative action in college admissions.

APS teacher and co-founder Paul J. Casilli said the conference was an over- all success.

"It was great for our students to be able tohear from others who aren't that much older andhave just finished the undergraduate experience,"he said.

APS Program Coordinator Shannon A. Loscin saidthe common links between KSG students and studentsat APS, a program for students considering careersin public service, made the exchange especiallybeneficial.

"[The KSG students] are models [for Dorchesterstudents] not only because of their minoritystatus, but also because of their career choices,"she said.

Janice R. Vaughn, director of the KSG Office ofCommunity and Public Service, agreed that KennedySchool students were natural role models forservice-oriented teens.

"There's a natural relationship between thosewho are promoting public service and the studentsat the Kennedy school," she said.

For at least one Dorchester student, however,the KSG conference was more than a careerexercise. The meeting provided vindication forDorchester High, a school under attack for itsviolent students and poor academic quality.

Kisha Lynn Moore, 17, a senior at Dorchester,said that last Friday's conference was anopportunity to show that "Dorchester is not allbad."

"It's really disappointing," she said, "to seeThe Boston Globe smash Dorchester High School evenwhile we're sitting at Harvard at a conferencedoing positive things."

Only last Friday, The Boston Globe ran a storydescribing Dorchester as "the city's worst" highschool. Amid poor testing scores and a 50 percentdrop-out rate, Dorchester High School'saccreditation is at risk.

The APS, however, goes against this trend. Theprogram boasts a 97 percent graduation rate, andhelps send 93 percent of its graduates on to someform of post-secondary education.

Students accepted to the APS program mustintern at a local service-oriented organization orcompany, and must perform community service on aregular basis. The 60 students in the program alsohave KSG mentors who help them with resumes,college applications and academic preparation