Maricopa Community Foundation awards scholarships

Five 2021 graduates from Maricopa High School and two college students were presented with scholarships totaling $18,500 from the Maricopa Community Foundation at Tuesday’s city council meeting.

Two students – Alexis Foreman and Madison Tyler – received $1,500 scholarships from Electrical District No. 3. Five received $2,500 scholarships from the John E. and Mary Lou Smith Foundation. They were Airen Fortunato, Katie Hanks, Amelia Guzman, Kanthikan “Anny” Kanjana and A’Shayla Anderson. Kanjana and Anderson were renewing winners, meaning they were awarded a scholarship last year, applied again and were selected.

According to foundation president Courtney Tyler, Kanjana and Anderson achieved 4.0 grade point averages in their freshman year of college. She said that sort of achievement is one reason she decided to get involved with the foundation.

“When we read some of the essays from these great kids on why they deserve this scholarship money and then we call them, hearing the excitement in their voices is so rewarding,” said Tyler, who has led the foundation since its inception two years ago. “And then to see the success they’re having with these returning scholarship winners and how grateful they are, it’s really a rewarding feeling.”

“We believe a thriving community depends on supporting the educational aspirations of students to help ensure they have every opportunity to become future leaders in a talented and skilled workforce,” says the foundation’s website. “Assisting as many students as possible to achieve their dream of earning a college degree is fundamental to our vision for a better city and a better world.”

This was the second year the scholarships were awarded. Applicants must be students living in Maricopa, meet the stated GPA standards as shown by submitting a transcript, write an essay stating why they deserve the scholarship and get recommendations from adults in support of their application. Community involvement, whether or not they have a job and other factors also are considered.

In presenting the scholarships Tuesday night, Councilmember Henry Wade reflected on the quality of Maricopa’s young citizens.

“It just keeps on coming, the level of excellence of our youth in Maricopa,” Wade said. “We have some excellent youth doing excellent things and it’s really nice to be able to recognize and acknowledge what they do with this opportunity and in other ways, because it’s important for them to know that what they do means something.”