Fifty-eight high school seniors from the Tampa Bay area have been selected as semifinalists for the 2011 Barnes Scholarship offered through the St. Petersburg Times Fund.
A total of 367 students from Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas, Hillsborough and Manatee counties applied. A Barnes Scholarship is worth up to $60,000 over four years at an accredited U.S. college or university. Each year, four winners are selected. This year, the St. Petersburg Times Fund will provide nearly $131,000 in financial aid to college students through the Barnes Scholarships.
Established by the St. Petersburg Times Fund in 1999, the scholarships are named after Andrew Barnes, retired chairman and CEO of the St. Petersburg Times. The Barnes Scholarships target college-bound high school seniors who have overcome significant obstacles in their lives while remaining committed to academic achievement and community service.
The semifinalists — 34 girls and 24 boys — now must complete the second portion of the application, providing answers to essay questions as well as family financial information, high school transcripts and test scores, and letters of recommendation. This information will be reviewed in early January, when 10 finalists will be selected. Those finalists will be interviewed in late January. Four winners will be announced in February.
Since 2000, 28 Barnes Scholarship winners have graduated from college. Sixteen are still enrolled, at such schools as Harvard, Yale, Princeton, MIT, Cornell, Eckerd College, Bowdoin College, Florida State, the University of Florida, Emory University, Scripps College and Northwestern University.
The St. Petersburg Times Fund is the not-for-profit philanthropic arm of the Times. It has provided scholarships for college students since 1953.
For more information about the Barnes Scholarship program or the St. Petersburg Times Fund, contact Nancy Waclawek, director of the fund, at (727) 893-8780 or waclawek@sptimes.com. The fund's website is www.tampabay.com/fund.
Barnes Scholarship semifinalists
Citrus County
Jeraldine Needham, Crystal River High
Masumi Palhof, Crystal River High
Amber Peacock, Lecanto High
Hernando County
Sarah McConnell, Bishop McLaughlin High
Maria Garcia, Springstead High
Bermarie Jerez, Springstead High
Colleen Pulawski, Springstead High
Hillsborough County
Aniek Cruz, Alonso High
Kelsey McDonald, Alonso High
Ashley Stephens, Alonso High
Sinhye Lee, Bloomingdale High
Khattiya Chharath, East Bay High
Benjamin Epps, Freedom High
Fatima Kamara, Freedom High
Diandra Latibeaudiere, Freedom High
Roberto Villalba, Gaither High
Kayla Freed, Hillsborough High
Jabin Jose, Middleton High
Stephanie Pena, Middleton High
Bradley Sykes, Plant High
Ashley Bracewell, Plant City High
Victoria Watkins, Plant City High
Benjamin Willis, Plant City High
Jonathan Castillo, Robinson High
Cody Smith, Robinson High
Brooke Jimenez, Sickles High
Kyle Franken, Spoto High
Austine Friedrich, Spoto High
Anthony Medina, Strawberry Crest High
Alisha Simpson, Tampa Bay Technical High
Mara Richman, Tampa Catholic High
Abraham Lozano, Wharton High
Manatee County
Christal Hayes, Bayshore High
Sabrina Torres, Bayshore High
Katie Granberg, Manatee High
Abydjana Tresalus, Manatee High
Pasco County
Michael Davidson, Academy at the Lakes
Zachary Ivanac, Gulf High
Ishia Pere, Gulf High
Joshua Gabel, Mitchell High
Richard Anderson, Ridgewood High
Anson Angail, Zephyrhills High
Bethany Smith, Zephyrhills High
Luis Adan, home-schooled
Pinellas County
Valiece Long, Clearwater High
Miles Marinello, Dunedin High
Tuba Sahiti, Northeast High
Paula Vargas, Northeast High
Adam Keilbach, Osceola Fundamental High
Michael Lai, Seminole High
India Bowman, St. Petersburg High
Joshua Goff, St. Petersburg High
Fedner Lauture, St. Petersburg High
Andre Revell, St. Petersburg High
Jasmine Wheeler, St. Petersburg High
Kenneth Bowers, St. Petersburg Collegiate High
Miranda Moon, Shorecrest Preparatory School
Justin Zirlott, Center Academy of Pinellas Park
This story has been changed to reflect the following correction: Barnes Scholarship semifinalist Adam Keilbach is a student at Osceola Fundamental High School in Pinellas County. A story Monday incorrectly identified his school.
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