NEW YORK, May 4, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- For millions of high school students across the country, a deep-rooted commitment to sports can potentially provide far more than just a line of accomplishment on a college application.
Florida senior Leesa Greenwood would know. By the time Leesa turned 18, she had lost both her parents, experienced homelessness, and was responsible for caring for her younger sister. Throughout her turbulent upbringing, Leesa maintained one constant— basketball. On the court, Leesa used her deep love for the game as a means of finding solace, excelling in her studies, expressing herself, and honoring her basketball-loving father.
"The Foot Locker Scholar Athletes Program celebrates and honors outstanding students like Leesa who have taken the skills they've acquired through sports and applied them to excel academically and become leaders within their communities," states Richard A. Johnson, President & Chief Executive Officer, Foot Locker, Inc. "We recognize the tremendous potential of our 20 winners and are deeply committed to providing unique educational opportunities to empower today's youth to succeed."
The program, which is a vital part of the Foot Locker Foundation, Inc., honors twenty outstanding student-athletes who demonstrate exceptional academic ability and strong leadership skills in sports, school and within their communities with $20,000 to support their college dreams. Supporting this all-star program is Fastweb, a trusted scholarship and financial aid resource used by students to help find opportunities to pay for school.
Today, the Foundation announces this year's twenty recipients. In addition, the Foundation is proud to announce the recipient of the newly introduced Ken. C. Hicks Scholarship, an additional $5,000 scholarship (for a total of $25,000) awarded to one of the twenty inductees, in honor of the organization's former Chairman and CEO. North Carolina high school senior, Shivraj Sandhu, took home the award for exemplifying elevated academic achievement, personal passion, and a true love of the game.
High school students and their families are faced with the skyrocketing costs of higher education today. Many talented students are hindered in their pursuit of college dreams by the significant financial burden associated with a college education. Last year, the average cost of a private, four-year, not-for-profit university was $31,231— an expense that could eat into two-thirds of the household income for the median U.S. family1.
The availability of scholarship programs, such as the Foot Locker Foundation's, can make a real difference in the affordability of a college education. This year's twenty winners will join the program's four previous classes of Foot Locker Scholar Athletes, which results in 100 total scholarship recipients over the five years since the program's inception in 2011. With our 2016 Class, the Foot Locker Foundation will have invested $2 million in the education and future of some of America's most promising scholar-athletes.
Winner Name | Hometown | Sport | Accomplishments |
Evan Routhier | Mequon, WI | Track, Hockey | - Bassist at Carnegie Hall Chamber Concert - Recipient of South Korea-US Youth Network Fellowship |
Tevin Skeete | Saint Albans, NY | Volleyball, Basketball | - Participant in the prestigious CUNY Gateway Program - Tutors middle school students |
Leesa Greenwood | Fort Walton Beach, FL | Basketball, Flag Football | - Coaches an inner-city Basketball team - Captain of the Varsity Basketball Team |
Mary Kaitlyn Wheeler | Adrian, GA | Track | - State Champion in three wheelchair events - Future Farmers of America Local Chapter and State-wide Leader |
Jesus Valenzuela | Tucson, AZ | Basketball | - Works with non-profit Youth On Their Own to mentor immigrant youth who's parents have been deported - Captain of Varsity Basketball Team |
Shivraj Sandhu | Wilson, NC | Soccer, Tennis | - Founder of Charity (L)earn of NC to provide technical equipment for low income communities - Disaster relief coordinator for his community |
Abbie Nelson | Holdredge, NE | Softball | - Created her own charity "Giving Gloves" that provides sports equipment to Dominican Communities - DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) Role Model |
Bailey Schott | Danville, NH | Basketball, baseball | - Leader of Project Hope initiatives, a cancer support organization - Leader of varsity baseball and basketball teams |
Victoria Powell | Mableton, GA | Track, Basketball | - US Junior Track Olympian - Leader of community-wide initiatives to promote diversity and inclusion |
Cristabel Otero Castaneda | San Diego, CA | Track, Swimming | - Created Girls in STEM conference to encourage low-income, minority girls to get involved in STEM - Founder of the FULL Project to provide meals for students who need them outside of school hours |
JoeShawn Head | Chicago, IL | Track, Archery, Fencing, Swim | - President, YWCA Sexual Assault Support Group - Student Body Vice President and Class President |
Arshia Sabir | Reseda, CA | Volleyball | - US Congressional Award for Community Service - International Genius Olympiad Winner |
Dallin Bentley | South Jordan, UT | Soccer, Lacrosse, Wrestling | - Taught English and distributed books in Cusco, Peru as part of an Eagle Scout project - Volunteer for Special Needs Mutual (activities for youth and adults with disabilities) |
Gile Alimasi | New Caney, TX | Football, Soccer | - Participant in the National Bezos Scholars Program - Co-founder of Momentum, an organization that increases low-income students access to college |
Logan Roberts | Shenandoah, IA | Football, Wrestling, Track | - Varsity Football Captain - All-State Choir and Marching Band |
Jia Yi Li | Portland, OR | Basketball, Tennis | - Created "Stop the Trade," an anti-sex trafficking organization and movement - President of the Red Cross Youth Council |
Ku'ulei Osako | Sacramento, CA | Soccer, Volleyball | - Captain of the Varsity Soccer Team - Youth soccer coach for low income students |
Cooper Barghols | Oro Valley, AZ | Football, Golf | - Started his own 501 (c)3 public charity called "Coop's Clan" to provide athletic outlets for cancer patients - President's Academic Achievement Gold Award |
Joanna Muniz | South Richmond Hill, NY | Soccer, Lacrosse, track | - President of Positive Behavior Intervention Support— mentorship organization that encourages positive behaviors in low income students - Student Body President |
Olive Umeh | Bronx, NY | Track, Volleyball, Softball | - Captain of the Varsity Volleyball Team - HS Law institute at Columbia University School of Law participant |
To read more on these incredible winners, visit: https://footlockerscholarathletes.com/
About Foot Locker Foundation:
Founded in 2001, Foot Locker Foundation is the charitable arm of Foot Locker, Inc., a specialty athletic retailer that operates approximately 3,400 stores in 23 countries in North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. Since its inception, the Foundation has developed significant partnerships, programs, and initiatives to improve and enrich communities across the country. Our mission is to promote a better world for today's youth by creating, developing, and supporting innovative educational programs and encouraging health and well-being through physical activity.
About Fastweb:
Fastweb, a top site in the Monster Worldwide (NYSE:MWW) network, is the nation's recognized leader in helping students pay for school, by providing scholarship and financial aid information, as well as information on jobs and internships. One out of three college-bound seniors use the site, and more than 50 million users have benefitted from Fastweb's information and services. Fastweb lets students create personalized profiles that can be matched against its expansive databases of colleges and scholarships. As the oldest and most popular free online scholarship matching service, the database has more than 1.5 million scholarships totaling over $3.4 billion. To learn more about Fastweb, visit www.fastweb.com and follow Fastweb on social media for the latest on paying for school all year long: Twitter (at @PayingForSchool); Facebook; Pinterest; Google+.
1 CBS News (http://www.cnbc.com/2015/06/16/why-college-costs-are-so-high-and-rising.html)
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160503/363251
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SOURCE Foot Locker Foundation, Inc.
