Janessa Pulido will study political science at the College of Charleston. The Agricultural Academy student was also the softball team captain.Kathleen Salas will use her $1,000 for pre-nursing studies at San Diego State University. Salas - who had a 4.335 GPA - was active in softball, basketball and soccer.Julie Cordova will study biomedicine and apply her $1,000 to studies at the University of California Merced. A Regents Scholar, Cordova had a 4.425 GPA.Ryan Carter will use his $1,000 for premed studies at UCLA. He had a 4.39 GPA and was active in Boys State.Jonathan Calderon’s $1,000 will be applied to studies in computer engineering at UCSB. The All County football player also had a 4.461 GPA.Adrian Quiroz, the first in his family to attend college, will apply his $1,000 to studies in chemical engineering. He works 25 hours a week, but stayed active in sports.Miguel Gomez, also a Regent Scholar, will use his $1,000 for studies in biological engineering. The football team captain had a 4.514 GPA and is involved in Mexican folk dancing.Veronica Esparza, the first in her family to attend college, will apply her $500 scholarship to chemical engineering studies at Cal Poly Pomona.Aspiring elementary school teacher Maria Cancino will use her $500 scholarship for liberal arts studies at Ventura CollegeAnd Allen Gwynn, who excelled in football and baseball and also is the first in his family to attend college, will apply his $500 to studies at the University of California Santa Barbara.
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(Top photo) Excited seniors were rewarded for outstanding achievement with Santa Paula Rotary Club scholarships. (Bottom photo) Dr. Mike Tushla (left), Scholarship chairman, greets keynote speaker Dr. Henry Montes. (Photos by John Nichols) |
SP Rotary Scholarships award fifteen grand to fifteen grads
May 29, 2009
Santa Paula News
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula TimesThere was fifteen grand for fifteen grads when an impressive lineup of 15 graduating Santa Paula High School seniors were celebrated through the generosity of Rotary Club Scholarships, which provided $15,000 overall to those among the community’s best and brightest students. The May 18 Rotary 2009 Scholarship Banquet, held at Logsdon’s at the Santa Paula Airport, included recipients’ families as well as supportive Rotarians.“The students were very impressive,” said 2009 Scholarship Chairman Dr. Mike Tushla. “They are well-rounded,” with many participating in sports, holding part-time jobs and even some that help care for younger siblings.Tushla said also impressive was keynote speaker Dr. Henry Montes, a 1978 SPHS graduate who was raised on Limoneira Ranch and now has an Oxnard-based practice in Radiation Oncology. The students, said Tushla, identified “easily” with Montes, whose address to the graduating seniors was “enthusiastic and positive.”Tushla noted, “People in the community don’t often get to hear about students achieving great things in the classroom,” and the scholarship recipients “will make Santa Paula proud. They represent what is right about our community.”Rotary Scholarship recipients undergo a challenging selection process that relies on a written application, essay and personal interview. Those students presented with scholarships are:Edwin Mancilla, who received $1,500 and will be a pre-med student at the University of California at Santa Cruz. Mancilla had a 4.451 GPA, completed 600 hours as a community volunteer, and also was selected as a University of California Merrill Scholar.Emily Hobson will apply her $1,500 scholarship to pre-veterinarian studies at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Hobson - who had a 4.534 GPA - served as a Regional Future Farmers of America officer and is a successful businessperson who sells fresh eggs at farmer’s markets.Jesus Medina, who immigrated to the United States with his family when he was 9 years old, was awarded $1,500 to pursue studies at the University of California Santa Barbara. Median had a 4.39 GPA and was active as a debate team leader, as well as being a soccer league Most Valuable Player.Bertha Yoselin Mateo was named to the National Honor Society and will apply her $1,000 to studies in criminal justice at University of California Long Beach.Manuel Jimenez will use his $1,000 for premed studies at the University of California San Diego. Trumpeter Jimenez - who had a 4.22 GPA - was active in the SPHS Jazz Band.
