Four PBSC students selected as semifinalists for Jack Kent Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship

Four Palm Beach State College students have been selected as semifinalists for the highly competitive Jack Kent Cooke Foundation’s Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship.

The students, who are all pursuing their Associate in Arts degree, are Roberto Corona, Kishan Streete, Paola Cedeno and Lusmat Charles.  Corona, Streete and Charles are also PBSC Dr. Floyd F. Koch Honors College students.

They are among 467 semifinalists chosen from over 1,600 applications from students who attend 212 community colleges in 43 states. The rigorous selection process assesses candidates on their exceptional academic ability and achievement, demonstrated financial need, perseverance, and leadership.

Finalists for the Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship will be announced in early May.

This highly competitive scholarship includes:

• The opportunity to graduate with as little debt as possible. The award, which is last dollar funding after all institutional aid, can provide as much as $55,000 per year for two to three years to complete a bachelor’s degree at any accredited four-year undergraduate institution in the U.S.
• Ability to pursue any area of study
• Personal advising about selecting a college and navigating financial aid
• Multifaceted advising about how to transition to a four-year college and maximize the student experience
• Opportunity to apply for the Internship Stipend program, conference and travel stipend, and graduate scholarship

Corona is a member of the Coding With The Doctors Club and hopes to attend the University of Florida to study computer science. Streete is a member of the Student Government Association, Math Club, Students for International Understanding and the treasurer of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars. She hopes to attend Stanford University to study chemical engineering. Paola is a member of the Student Conduct Committee, Budgeting Committee and is the vice president of the Student Government Association and president of the STEM Club. She hopes to study mathematics at Florida Atlantic University or the University of Miami. Charles is the treasurer of the Student Government Association, a member of Phi Thetta Kappa and serves on the Student Activities Budget Committee for the Loxahatchee Groves campus. He plans to study economics at either Cornell or Vanderbilt universities.

“Our Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship represents a lifeline for exceptional community college students to actualize their academic dreams,” said Giuseppe “Seppy” Basili, executive director of the Cooke Foundation. “This year’s semifinalists exemplify the extraordinary talent found within community colleges across America, and we’re excited to congratulate this group as we celebrate a quarter century of work as a Foundation.”

List of this year’s Jack Kent Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship semifinalists and their community colleges. To learn more about the Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship, visit the website.