Top scholars join UofSC freshman class
Posted on: 6/29/2015; Updated on: 6/29/2015By Megan Sexton, 803-777-1421
The University of South Carolina will welcome some of the nation’s and the state’s top students for the university’s most valuable and prestigious scholarship program. Recipients of the Carolina/Hamilton Scholar Awards for in-state students and the McNair/Horseshoe Scholar Awards for out-of-state students will join the Carolina community in August.
“Students of the highest caliber from across the state and around the country flock to the University of South Carolina’s Top Scholars Program,” said Scott Verzyl, Carolina’s associate vice president for enrollment management. “These students are selected not only for their impressive academic achievement, but also for the breadth and depth of their engagement as leaders and citizens outside the classroom. We invest in our Top Scholars knowing they’ll embrace this opportunity and push themselves in amazing and creative ways, first as USC students both within and beyond the classroom, and later as proud and productive alumni.”
More than 2,750 students applied for Carolina’s scholar awards, making it the largest and most competitive applicant pool in the university’s history. The university invited 90 scholar candidates to campus to compete for these awards. This year’s 22 McNair and Horseshoe Scholars include students from 11 states. In-state, the seven Stamps Carolina Scholars, 20 Carolina Scholars and one Hamilton Scholar come from nine counties in South Carolina.
The Carolina Scholars Award is valued at $10,000 per year for four years. Beyond its monetary value, the scholarship provides students additional resources and support, including pairing them with a faculty mentor.
Seven students also are named Stamps Carolina Scholars, and will receive all the benefits of the Carolina Scholars award, plus $8,000 to be used for enrichment opportunities including undergraduate research, study abroad, service projects or trips or unpaid internships during their undergraduate tenure. The Hamilton Scholars award for in-state students is valued at $7,000 per year for four years.
The Stamps Carolina Scholars are: Carina Leaman of Irmo; Patrick McKenzie of Lexington; Stephanie Munie of North Augusta; Charissa Pichai of Simpsonville; Jennifer Quindlen of Irmo; Olivia Reszczynski of Irmo; and Sara Wallam of Columbia.
The Carolina Scholars are: Casey Brayton of Irmo; Taylor Lynn Cribbs of Dillon; Gabriel David D’Agostino of York; Katherine Lee “K. Lee” Graham of Chapin; Katherine “Katie” Heins of Fort Mill; Katharine “Kate” Hoffman of Columbia; Nicole Hoffner of Simpsonville; Jared Laymon of Greer; Neha Malhotra of Columbia; Taylor Martin of Greenville; Shreya Mehta of Spartanburg; Chandler Melton of Hartsville; Phoebe Ngo of Gilbert; Celine Peksenar of Lexington; Andrew Re of West Columbia; William Rivers of Lexington; Cole Shubert of Charleston; Alayna Wells of Moore; Grace Whitbeck of Mount Pleasant; and Kelly Yoon of Greenville.
The Hamilton Scholar is Zane Bridwell of Woodruff.
The McNair Scholars Award is the most valuable and prestigious scholarship for out-of-state students. The award is valued at $15,000 per year for four years. The Horseshoe Scholars Award for out-of-state students is valued at $11,000 per year for four years. Each of these awards also comes with a tuition reduction which translates into a scholarship package worth more than $130,800 for McNair Scholars and $114,800 for Horseshoe Scholars.
McNair Scholars for 2015 are: Jacklyn Abernathy of Franklin, Tennessee; Matthew “South” Bright of Forest City, North Carolina; Gregory Burton of Plainsboro, New Jersey; James “Wade” Curlee of High Point, North Carolina; Harrison Engoren of River Forest, Illinois; Noemi Glaeser of Fairfax, Virginia; Clare Hachten of Louisville, Kentucky; Olivia Halvorson of Bartlett, Tennessee; Deanna “Dee Dee” Keen of Brookfield, Illinois; Donald “Don” Landrum of Gainesville, Georgia; Reaghan Murphy of Souderton, Pennsylvania; Liudas Panavas of Chesterbrook, Pennsylvania; Lyndsey Reynolds of Seabrook, Texas; Angela Rogers of Mooresville, North Carolina; Megan Scharner of Maineville, Ohio; Milaan Shah of Charlotte, North Carolina; Madeline “Maddie” Spetz of Cincinnati, Ohio; Joelle Strom of Cincinnati, Ohio; John Wacker of Lakeway, Texas; and Audrey Ware of Jacksonville, Florida.
Horseshoe Scholars are: Elizabeth Grace of Milford, Ohio; and Monique Hayes of Brentwood, Tennessee.
The McNair Scholars program began in 1998 and is supported by a $30 million gift from university alumnus Robert McNair and his wife Janice McNair. The Carolina Scholars program was developed by the university in 1969. This is the third year for the Stamps Carolina Scholars program, funded through a gift from the Stamps Family Charitable Foundation, founded by Penny and E. Roe Stamps IV.
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