October 5, 2012
Media Contact: Barbara Schmertz
Jack Kent Cooke Foundation
44325 Woodridge Parkway
Lansdowne, VA 20176
(703) 723-8000 ext. 247
Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Announces
2012 College Scholarship Recipients
LANSDOWNE, VA – There is no shortage of talent and drive among low-income high school students, if only you know where to look. Last year, for instance, Daniel Gonzalez designed and built a pipe organ, which he donated to a local school; Merilin Castillo helped improve sex education in Boston’s public schools; and Stella Wong won national and international piano, chamber music, and concerto competitions.
These three outstanding and creative young people are typical of the 58 recipients of this year’s Jack Kent Cooke Foundation College Scholarship, who are now freshmen at some of the most prestigious institutions in the country. As College Scholars, they will receive mentoring, summer internship funding, academic and social support, and up to $30,000 annually, for four years of college.
“The College Scholarship Program is one way we are helping support the next generation of leaders,” said Lawrence Kutner, Ph.D., the Foundation’s executive director. “These are exceptional young men and women who have spent the past few years as part of our Young Scholars Program and have demonstrated that exceptional talent and drive can be found in students from all income levels.”
To date, 239 students have received College Scholarships from the Foundation. They have attended 114 schools, including Ivy League colleges, flagship state universities, prestigious art institutions, and institutions serving minorities.
During the past 11 years, the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation has supported more than 1,300 high school, college and graduate students with scholarships worth approximately $150 million. In addition, it has supported institutions and organizations with $81 million in grants.
2012 College Scholarship Recipients
University of Pennsylvania
Roosevelt University
Barnard College, Columbia University
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
American University
Pepperdine University
Harvard University
Howard University
Princeton University
The New School
Macalester College
Johns Hopkins University
Yale University
Harvard University
Northwestern University
Yale University
Tufts University
Tufts University
Stanford University
Rhodes College
Beloit College
North Carolina State University
University of Notre Dame
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Juilliard School
Berkelee School of Music
Georgia Institute of Technology
Bryn Mawr College
Boston College
Harvard University
Yale University
Williams College
The Juilliard School
Yale University
School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Bates College
University of Texas at Dallas
Dartmouth College
Eckerd College
Beloit College
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
St. John's College
Lehigh University
University of Tampa Honors College
Rice University
Yale University
Duke University
Montana State University
College of the Holy Cross
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Lewis and Clark College
Claremont McKenna College
Adelphi University
Harvard University
Amherst College
Wesleyan University
Stanford University
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
About Us
The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation is a private, independent foundation established in 2000 by estate of Jack Kent Cooke to advance the education of exceptionally promising students who have financial need. The Foundation believes that all exceptionally talented students who have financial need will excel academically when given the resources to develop their talents. We support these students from elementary school to graduate school through scholarships, grants, and direct services. Our programs include the largest private scholarships in the US for students transferring from community colleges to four-year institutions, as well as generous scholarships for students in high school, college and graduate school, and grants to organizations that serve high achieving students who have financial need.