Press Release: January 27, 2022

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

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QuestBridge Finalists Nominated for Prestigious U.S. Presidential Scholars Program

Palo Alto, California (January 27, 2022) – QuestBridge is excited to announce the high school seniors nominated by QuestBridge as candidates for the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program, one of the nation’s highest honors for high school students. In 2015, QuestBridge became one of only a few partner organizations nationally selected to identify outstanding students for this honor. The nominees were selected from a competitive pool of 6,312 Finalists of the QuestBridge National College Match. QuestBridge initially received over 16,500 applicants for the 2021 National College Match, a national program that connects high-achieving high school seniors from low-income backgrounds with full four-year scholarships to the nation’s top colleges. Several of these nominees are also QuestBridge National College Match Scholarship Recipients, receiving full scholarships to top colleges valued at over $200,000. Our 13 nominees for the 2022 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program are:

Michael Brouse – Spanish River Community High School, Delray Beach, FL

Carolyn Clebsch – Kealakehe High School, Kailua Kona, HI

Jonathan Garcia – Palo Verde High School, Las Vegas, NV

Zoie Geronimi – Kingsford High School, Kingsford, MI

Sunny Gu – Centennial High School, Ellicott City, MD

Soleei Guasp – B M C Durfee High School, Fall River, MA

Yacoub Kahkajian – Poolesville High School, Gaithersburg, MD

Taehyeong Ko – Cleveland High School, Reseda, CA

Aisha Kokan – University High School of Indiana, Carmel, IN

Stella Kwon – Brookwood High School, Grayson, GA

Aslan Newson – Ida. B Wells-Barnett High School, Portland, OR

Elizabeth Ni – Union County Academy of Allied Health Sciences, Berkeley Hts, NJ

Zahra Virani – Clear Brook High School, Houston, TX

Upon submission of the application, candidates will be notified of semi-finalist status in April. Presidential Scholars will be notified in May 2022.

About QuestBridge:

QuestBridge, a national nonprofit based in Palo Alto, California, connects the nation’s most exceptional, low-income youth with leading institutions of higher education and further life opportunities. By recruiting, developing, and motivating these students — beginning in high school through college to their early career — QuestBridge aims to help talented low-income students attend the nation’s best colleges and to support them to achieve success in their respective careers and communities.

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