Exceptional High School Seniors Awarded $40,000 College Scholarship

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Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Announces Recipients of the Nation’s Largest College Scholarship

Lansdowne, VA — Today the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation announced the 106 recipients of its College Scholarship Program, who will each receive up to $40,000 annually to complete their bachelor’s degree.

In addition to the monetary award, these new Cooke College Scholars will receive comprehensive educational advising from foundation staff to guide them through the processes of transitioning to campus and preparing for their careers. The foundation will additionally provide opportunities for internships, study abroad, and graduate school funding, as well as connection to a thriving network of 2,300 fellow Cooke Scholars and alumni.

“High-achieving students with financial need are often deterred from applying to elite colleges and universities,” said Harold O. Levy, executive director of the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation. “And yet, the research clearly shows that when they are able to enroll in selective institutions, lower-income students are just as likely as their wealthier peers to be academically successful and graduate. We look forward to supporting Cooke College Scholars as they matriculate to universities such as Stanford, Yale, and Harvard.”

This year, over 5,000 students applied for the Cooke College Scholarship. Many of these students were identified through a partnership with the College Board, which connects scholarship organizations to students through their participation in the PSAT/NMSQT and PSAT 10. The foundation evaluated each submission based on academic ability, persistence, leadership, and service to others. Engineering, political science and government, biological science, and physics are the most popular fields of study among the cohort.

A full list of the 2018 Cooke College Scholars, including the high schools and states they represent, can be found below.

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Arizona

Seth Filo — Estrella Foothills High School
Cory James Romanov — Moon Valley High School

Arkansas

Kayrat Bektemirov — Lake Forest Academy

California

Beatrice Castillo-Sahagun — Bell High School
Amira Chowdhury — Herbert Hoover High School
David Garcia — Benjamin Franklin HS STEM Magnet
Jane Huynh — Mater Dei High School
Joanne Miao — The College Preparatory School
Candilla Park — Groton School
Tammy Pham — KIPP San Jose Collegiate
Grant Regen — Loyola High School
Navpreet Sekhon — Milton Academy
Javier Solis — Harvard-Westlake School
Claudia Zimmerman — Calabasas High School

Colorado

Maile Harris — Legacy High School
Alondra Moreno — The Lawrenceville School

Connecticut

Abram Goda — Trumbull High School

Florida

Brandon Boies — University High School
Brandon Boyle — The Bolles School
Guido Dominguez — Miami Beach Senior High School
Aicha Enouiti — Freedom High School
Karen Gonzalez-Videla — Hillsborough High School
Olga Kiyan — North Broward Preparatory School
Khanh Nguyen — Middleton High School
Brianna Rodgers — Miami Senior High School
Fouzia Raza — Miami Springs Senior High School
Cristian Rios — Okeechobee High School
Wally Vargas-Rios — Olympia High School

Georgia

Kennedi Brooks — St. Andrew’s School
Brian Kang — Chamblee High School
Jennifer Kwon — Phillips Academy
Neha Mohanty — Clarke Central High School
Ibum Obu — Pace Academy
Thuy Pham — Parkview High School
Sakshi Sehgal — Chamblee High School
Matthew So — North Gwinnett High School
Ana Trejo — Murray County High School
Sabrina Yvellez — Chatham Hall
Melody Wang — Walton High School

Hawaii

Sierra Gleason — Kamehameha Schools: Hawaii Campus

Idaho

Jamison Julian — Columbia High School

Illinois

Maelee Chen — Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy
Abdurahman Donka — Phillips Academy
Kevin Galvan Cuesta — Glenbard East High School
Aleksandra “Ola” Wicko — Lane Technical High School

Iowa

Shawn Thacker — West High School

Kansas

Shulammite Lim — Olathe North High School

Kentucky

Zsombor Gal — Paul Laurence Dunbar High School
Mallorie Moore — The Madeira School

Maryland

Sumin Goh — The Hotchkiss School
Na Hye “Laurel” Kim — Poolesville High School
Alyssa White — Science and Mathematics Academy at Aberdeen High School

Massachusetts

Alexandria Kruizenga — Phillips Academy
Johannes Nightingale — Berkshire Community College

Michigan

Maryam Sharif – Union High School

Minnesota

Munira Alimire — Rochester Stem Academy

Missouri

Kristine Cho — Columbia-Rock Bridge Senior High School
Galven Edmonson — The Barstow School
Mouhamed Ndiaye — Gateway STEM High School
Jade Nguyen — Fort Zumwalt East High School

New Hampshire

Mya Poluchov — Contoocook Valley Regional High School

New Jersey

Krystle DiCristofalo — Stanford Online High School

New York

Aishat Adekunle — Brooklyn Friends School
Julio Ballista — All City Leadership Secondary School
QIng Yu Chen — The Dalton School
Michael Codrington — Phillips Academy
Julian Nunez — Democracy Preparatory Charter High School

North Carolina

Collin Lejano — Rockingham County High School
Shiv Patel — North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics
Paputchar Purcell — North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics
Kristina Stuckey — Hickory High School

Ohio

Oleg Golev — Rocky River High School

Oklahoma

Grace Blackwell — Oktaha High School
Jenny Ha — Western Heights High School

Oregon

Victoria Jacoby — West Salem High School

Pennsylvania

Yenlin Kuo — Central Bucks High School West

South Carolina

Johnny “Michael” Jiron — Lake View High School
Kayla Stone — Hanahan High School

Tennessee

Amal Altareb — Memphis Central High School
Kendra Chaney — Stewart County Schools
Anthony Varner Jr — Memphis University School
Lucas Wiesemann — The Webb School

Texas

Aidan Brown — McKinney Boyd High School
Denisse Cordova Carrizales — MacArthur High School
Millie Hernandez — YES Preparatory Schools: Southeast
Colby King — Cedar Hill Collegiate High School
Youngeun Lee — The Hockaday School
Alexandra Lozano Vazquez — St. John’s School
Bennett McCullough — Hendrickson High School
Emily Ndiokho — Phillips Academy
Havi Nguyen — Ross S. Sterling High School
Stephanie Nino de Rivera — MacArthur High School
Brendan O’Connell — Fort Worth Country Day School
Courtney Reid — Cypress Woods High School
Gerardo Segura — Phillips Academy
Ryan James Solis — Eastwood High School
Ashley Trube — Culver Academies
Paola Valadez — KIPP Generations Collegiate
Juan “Bryan” Valdivia — South San Antonio High School

Virginia

Ryan Ellis — Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School
Timothy “Tim” Han — Phillips Exeter Academy
Benjamin Harrison — Phillips Exeter Academy
Michelle Rojas Zambrana — The Potomac School
Qualan Woodard — Loudoun Academy of Science

Washington

Abel Berhan — Evergreen High School

Wisconsin

Emma Harlan — Onalaska High School

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About the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation
The Cooke Foundation is dedicated to advancing the education of exceptionally promising students who have financial need. Since 2000, the foundation has awarded $175 million in scholarships to more than 2,300 students from 8th grade through graduate school, along with comprehensive counseling and other support services. The foundation has also provided over $97 million in grants to organizations that serve such students. www.jkcf.org

Media Contact: Amber Styles, 703-723-5647, media@jkcf.org