They're headed to Cornell, Duke and the University of Florida. They want to be doctors, engineers and marine biologists. The winners and finalists for the 2011 Barnes Scholarships sponsored by the St. Petersburg Times Fund have logged in a number of different and noteworthy achievements as high school students. Still, as they head to college they share one common trait: perseverance in the face of adversity. Their successes will be celebrated at a luncheon Tuesday at the Marriott Resort in St. Petersburg. Here are their stories:
Winner: Fedner Lauture
School: St. Petersburg High, Pinellas
GPA: 4.5
Plans to attend: Duke University
Area of interest: medicine
"In college, I want to do the things I could not have done as a child. I want to learn how to ski and play tennis, I want to study, in depth, subjects that interest me like mythology and Shakespeare, and I want to explore my passion for musical theater and dance."
My story: Ever since I was a child, my mother told me never let others define me by the color of my skin and that as the son of Haitian immigrants I had to work harder than everybody to prove that I was more than a minority or a demographic. These words have followed me throughout my life and have made me into the strong Haitian American I am today.
I went to an elementary school with a majority of white students … I had a teacher who treated me differently. In fact, I remember crying because another student slammed the door shut on my hand and actually getting in trouble because my crying, according to her, was a disturbance to the class. I never understood why she treated me differently. ... She did not see me as a student but as a black kid who caused problems in her class. Her racism was one of the very first obstacles in my life.
In middle school, it was a huge shock to go from a predominantly white school to a predominantly black school. Other African-American students considered me "white" because I never wore my pants below my waist or spoke as if I never looked at a grammar book and … they shunned, bullied, and harassed me. …
I have greatly overcome the obstacle of stereotypes in my life. I am now the student body president of St. Petersburg High School and to achieve this goal I had to appeal to all of the students. I did not limit myself or let prejudices define me. By continuing to be myself, I won the election. Life is full of obstacles and I welcome every single one because I know that I can overcome them.
Winner: Tuba Sahiti
School: Northeast High, Pinellas
GPA: 4.77
Plans to attend: Harvard or Columbia
Area of interest: international relations
"I hope to work for the U.S. State Department, NATO, or the U.N. so that I can promote peace and goodwill across and within borders."
Winner: Kelsey McDonald
School: Alonso High, Hillsborough
GPA: 6.04
Plans to attend: Yale or Princeton universities
Area(s) of interest: pharmacology
"My career goal is to become a ground-breaking pharmacological researcher. I want to help develop new medicines and treatments that will help people to live longer and better lives."
My story: Although neither of my parents completed more than just a few semesters of college, there was never a question in our home that I would go to college. Unfortunately, midway through my freshman year, my parents informed me that they may no longer have the money to send me to college. The next year, after the economic crash of September 2008, they confirmed it, in tears.
It was the best thing that ever happened to me.
It became my responsibility to earn a college scholarship. The amazing teachers and administrators at Alonso High School became true partners in my education. My mother found used standardized test-prep books on eBay since we couldn't afford expensive tutors or test-prep courses. A lack of money was replaced by teamwork and an unrelenting work ethic.
With the support of my parents and Alonso High School, I've been able to alter what would have been a certainly bleak future. I am a Barnes Scholarship winner, a National Merit Finalist, an AP Scholar with honor, and will qualify for Florida's Academic Bright Futures Scholarship.
I will become a groundbreaking scientist ... and ... I will pay it forward.
Winner: Roberto Villalba
School: Gaither High, Hillsborough
GPA: 6.24
Plans to attend: Cornell University
Area(s) of interest: computer science, mechanical engineering
"I plan to ride the wave of 'Robotic Innovation.' It is at the front of this wave that I will achieve one of my deepest desires, to give my name a solid place in history and to leave behind something for society; something that will benefit mankind. And even if I can't leave behind a whole flight of stairs, then a single stepping-stone will suffice."
My story: Seeing my mom struggle has been the best experience to prepare me for the real world, yet it has also been the most difficult part of my life to overcome. Life started off in Cuba, where a third-world status was not enough, so in addition, a tyrant prevented all of us from ever achieving anything. My mom knew this very well and through hard work she was eventually able to put both of us in the land of opportunities, though that title did not apply to her. The biggest barrier, the language.
I soon began my first day of school without being able to understand anything that had went on during the lessons. I got home with tears in my eyes. My mom then sat down with me and explained how much luckier I was than she. She explained why we had come to America and that the most important thing was education. The next day I practiced my English by saying "yes" to whomever I spoke to.
As soon as my mom was granted a worker's permit, she began to work at different places, but it was very hard for her to get a job. In an attempt to find a job, we moved several times and each time I was forced to start from zero in whichever school I was put in. She finally found a steady job working at a factory, but the hours were horrible. I was barely able to see my mom during this period of our lives but I knew it hurt her much more than it did me.
It was then that I saw how cruel things could be for those who do not get an education. I often saw her cry and she would always tell me, "Study! Study hard!" I knew quite well that she was doing all that for me and I told myself I would never let it be in vain.
Finalist: Colleen Pulawski
School: Frank W. Springstead High, Hernando
GPA: 4.42
Plans to attend: Carnegie Mellon University
Area(s) of interest: theater and the arts
"My goal as a performer is to always approach my work with a curious mind and not only become a skilled actor, but a keen observer of human nature."
My story: In 2002, I found out that my mom had Parkinson's. I was 9 years old and unsure of what it all meant. The terms "dopamine," "tremors" and "neurological disorder" were foreign to me, but I could tell from the tone of the adults around me that these were serious matters. The first few months after mom's diagnosis, we didn't see much change. As more time passed, her hands shook more, neurologist appointments became more frequent, her sense of smell became severely damaged. Even at this point, however, I was still ignorant of the consequences Parkinson's brings. Then, mom couldn't handle a car, and she stopped working.
It was after these things happened that I realized the toll Parkinson's was taking on my mom. I wanted to tackle the disease head-on. I began reading her books and learning as much as I could about PD. Slowly I began to understand and cope with the disease.
Today, my mom's disease is progressing slowly. She still can't drive and doesn't work, but Parkinson's is not completely ruling her life. I understand Parkinson's now, and I am not willing to let confusion overwhelm me. The day might come when Parkinson's takes over my mom's body, but I will be ready.
Finalist: Fatima Kamara
School: Freedom High, Hillsborough
GPA: 5.57
Plans to attend: American University
Area(s) of interest: psychology, marine biology
"Working toward a career and earning a position that allows upward mobility, independence, and intellectual stimulation is one of my foremost goals."
My story: I have heard it said that the measure of first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposing ideas and still retain the ability to function. My greatest strength is my ability to function and I use it to overcome my greatest obstacle, dysfunction.
Dysfunction is, by my personal definition, an absent father, a troubled sister and constant uprooting.
My final paradox is ongoing: I have nowhere I call "home," and yet I feel as though I have lived everywhere. In total, it amounts to seven houses and apartments in four cities, residency in three states and enrollment in six schools, including three elementary and two high schools. The pain from being uprooted was not superficial and held just as much weight as any other obstacle I had encountered. As hopelessness took root in my mind, I realized that the worst scenario could become the best beginning.
I have adapted to the chaos in life by developing the ability to look at things from opposing angles, simultaneously if I must. Whatever comes … I have built up a strong defense and will remain victorious.
Finalist: Bradley Sykes
School: Plant High, Hillsborough
GPA: 6.08
Plans to attend: Duke University
Area(s) of interest: economics
"My primary goal beyond high school involves character. For all the talk of free thought and future income, important though it may be, I view the entire college experience as perhaps my first legitimate opportunity to discover myself."
My story: My mother died on a Tuesday. I was 3 years old. ... Her passing has certainly left an emotional impression on me over the years, most noticeably in odd, uncalculated moments of intense loneliness, perhaps spurred by nothing more than a mother and child at the park or a heart-wrenching scene at the cinema. However, I would contend that, surprisingly, the greatest consequences of the loss of one's mother are manifested indirectly in what is left of one's upbringing.
The genuine secret to my success is something more, something substantial, something fatherly. Even in the tenderest years of development, I feel a father's every action is noticed, dare I say absorbed, into the child's character. …
Though it could never be described as easy, or even obligatory, thanks to him I never led a life of latchkey and babysitters. Every day, he would send me off to class with a wet kiss. And every day, he greeted me with the same. Only now can I read between the lines. Between those two kisses lay an ocean of weariness and sorrow. Somehow, each day he was able to shake off the crippling agony of losing his life's love and plow ahead into the duties of two parents, all the while able to summon the spirit to let me know I was loved. Always.
Finalist: Andre Revell
School: St. Petersburg High, Pinellas
GPA: 4.82
Plans to attend: University of Florida
Area(s) of interest: technology
"I feel I have the possibility of creating something all of us can develop, change, and use by going to a college of my dreams."
My story: For 13 years I go without a father and face many setbacks. Life can be really difficult. Every day can be a struggle. Going to school can be a challenge within itself: leaving home even before most of my friends wake up in order to walk 2 miles to my bus stop because I can't afford a car to drive myself to school, because I can't afford a cell phone to call someone for help, because I can't afford a new bike to ride to my bus stop.
I do not, however, look at my austere life as a failure or an excuse. This is simply my reality now, but I can afford a better life in the future. I can become stronger and expand my opportunities, even without a father.
Finalist: Benjamin Willis
School: Plant City High, Hillsborough
GPA: 6.40
Plans to attend: University of Florida
Area(s) of interest: engineering
"I want to be able to reinvent our failing infrastructure into something that can support the excess population we already have."
My story: In retrospect, my halcyon days roaming unleashed around the U.S. Army base my father was stationed on in Germany, for the better part of my first decade of life, were taken for granted. I was an Army brat … who had unfortunately been conditioned to believe that every child had a multiroomed home, video games with the newest console … and a glorious bounty under the Christmas tree.
The day my father sat my siblings and me down to tell us he was seeking a divorce… My mother gained custody. I was enrolled in my first civilian public school. I earned straight A's in all of my classes, which were honors level. I had left my friends and the memorable places, but I had also discarded my sense of privilege and unthankful reception to life's blessings overseas. I loved the feeling of a hard-earned A+, and the satisfaction it brought to my immigrant mother; to know the day- and graveyard-shift jobs she worked to support us were not in vain and her children were college-bound, that they would receive a postsecondary education not available to her when she graduated high school in war-torn revolutionary Iran.
We moved to the cheapest two-bedroom apartments in Plant City, and my two siblings, mother and I managed to survive five years in the crime-ridden area next to the railroad tracks living paycheck to paycheck. … I feel that with my college education I can weather any financial obstacles and provide my loved ones and my mother especially with security of home and other necessities.
Finalist: Richard Anderson
School: Ridgewood High, Pasco
GPA: 3.87
Plans to attend: Florida State University
Area(s) of interest: marine biology
"I developed a love for all things aquatic shortly after I moved to Florida at the ripe age of 5. ... I hope to go far in life by not only earning a high level of education, but also by helping others and helping defenseless sea creatures."
Semifinalists
Citrus County
Jeraldine Needham
Crystal River High School
GPA: 3.8
Masumi Palhof
Crystal River High School
GPA: 4.22
Amber Peacock
Lecanto High School
GPA: 4.1
Hernando County
Sarah McConnell
Bishop McLaughlin Catholic High School
GPA: 4.4
Maria Garcia
Frank W. Springstead High School
GPA: 4.46
Bermarie Jerez
Frank W. Springstead High School
GPA: 4.0
Hillsborough County
Kayla Freed
Hillsborough High School
GPA: 4.99
Ashley Bracewell
Plant City High School
GPA: 3.8
Victoria Watkins
Plant City High School
GPA: 5.38
Kyle Franken
Spoto High School
GPA: 5.62
Austine Friedrich
Spoto High School
GPA: 5.01
Alisha Simpson
Tampa Bay Technical High School
GPA: 5.46
Aniek Cruz
Alonso High School
GPA: 5.1
Ashley Stephens
Alonso High School
GPA: 4.8
Sinhye Lee
Bloomingdale High School
GPA: 4.73
Khattiya Chharath
East Bay High School
GPA: 6.0
Benjamin Epps
Freedom High School
GPA: 4.86
Diandra Latibeaudiere
Freedom High School
GPA: 4.85
Jabin Jose
Middleton High School
GPA: 5.9
Stephanie Pena
Middleton High School
GPA: 4.0
Jonathan Castillo
Robinson High School
GPA: 5.32
Cody Smith
Robinson High School
GPA: 5.0
Brooke Jimenez
Sickles High School
GPA: 5.61
Anthony Medina
Strawberry Crest High School
GPA: 4.92
Mara Richman
Tampa Catholic High School
GPA: 3.93
Abraham Lozano
Wharton High School
GPA: 5.58
Manatee County
Christal Hayes
Bayshore High School
GPA: 3.38
Sabrina Torres
Bayshore High School
GPA: 4.0
Katie Granberg
Manatee High School
GPA: 3.9
Abydjana Tresalus
Manatee High School
GPA: 4.3
Pasco County
Michael Davidson
Academy at the Lakes, Pasco
GPA: 3.8
Zachary Ivanac
Gulf High School
GPA: 4.4
Ishia Perez
Gulf High School
GPA: 3.7
Joshua Gabel
J.W. Mitchell High School
GPA: 3.9
Anson Angail
Zephyrhills High School
GPA: 4.52
Bethany Smith
Zephyrhills High School
GPA: 4.03
Luis Adan
Home-schooled
GPA: 3.53
Pinellas County
Miles Marinello
Dunedin High School
GPA: 4.2
Adam Keilbach
Seminole High School
GPA: 4.0
Joshua Goff
St. Petersburg High School
GPA: 4.6
Valiece Long
Clearwater High School
GPA: 4.42
Paula Vargas
Northeast High School
GPA: 4.37
Mickael Lai
Seminole High School
GPA: 4.3
India Bowman
St. Petersburg High School
GPA: 3.69
Jasmine Wheeler
St. Petersburg High School
GPA: 4.2
Kenneth Bowers
School: St. Petersburg Collegiate High School
GPA: 4.76
Miranda Moon
School: Shorecrest Preparatory School
GPA: 3.13
Justin Zirlott
School: Center Academy High School
GPA: 4.0
Compiled by Times editorial assistant Emily Rieman
Loading...