Four more students have been awarded the Tara Xavier Hepburn Foundation scholarship to bring the total number of students with the award for the new academic year to 11, and the number of scholarships awarded since the inception of the program in 2007 to 33.
Presley Godet, formerly of A.F. Adderley Junior School; Ashley Treco, formerly of L.W. Young Junior School; Vashanti Storr, formerly of S.C. McPherson Junior School; and D'angelo Smith of St. John's College and a member of The T.A.R.A. Project are the 2016 recipients.
Presley Godet
Presley and Ashley will enter 10th grade at St. Anne's School (SAS). Vashanti and D'angelo will enter 10th grade at St. John's College (SJC).
The other seven Tara Scholars, all of whom are studying at SJC are Dwayna Archer, Deneil Rolle and Danitra Sargent who will be entering 11th grade; and Monique Chandler, Shania Lewis, Ralph Sealy and Nastacia Turnquest who will be entering 12th grade.
To be considered for the scholarship, applicants must be nominated by their school or be a member of The T.A.R.A. Project, attain at least a 3.0 G.P.A., have demonstrated leadership ability and/or community involvement, be of good character and successfully pass a minimum of five Bahamas Junior Certificate (BJC) subjects, including English and mathematics, with grade C or better. Applicants also may be required to attend an interview.
The Tara Xavier Hepburn Foundation Scholarship covers full tuition and the cost of books for studies in grades 10 through 12 at St. Anne's School or St. John's College.
The Scholarship Committee is satisfied that all of the new Tara Scholars, like the former and current Tara Scholars, will make or continue to make a worthwhile contribution to their respective Anglican school.
D'angelo Smith
The newest quartet enter the program as three former Tara Scholars -- Jeffon Stubbs, Demonica Brown and Eleanor Simmons, move on to pursue higher education after having graduated with distinction. Jeffon and Demonica from SAS and Eleanor from SJC.
Jeffon, the recipient of a full Presidential Scholarship valued at $120,000-plus at Morgan State University, Baltimore, Maryland, through Junior Achievement (JA) will study Actuary Science.
The former head boy graduated with a perfect 4.00 grade point average (GPA) and successfully passed eight subjects in The Bahamas General Certificate of Secondary Education (BGCSE) examinations with seven As and one B.
Jeffon was the recipient of numerous other awards and prizes at SAS' graduation. He took home prizes for chemistry, English language, English literature, mathematics, physics, Religious studies and Spanish. He was also the recipient of the William Edward Thompson and was named the 2016 Honours Day Convocation Valedictorian by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity.
Demonica is the recipient of two JA scholarships -- an $8,750 renewable scholarship for SUNY Oswego in New York and a $16,000 renewable scholarship for Middle Tennessee State. She has been accepted by University of Prince Edward Island and Acadia University in Canada. She plans to pursue a degree in biology at College of The Bahamas (COB). Her longterm goal is to become a veterinarian, which she plans to pursue at a Canadian University once she complete her completes her studies at COB.
Eleanor who served as prefect at SJC was successful in the BGCSE examinations with one A, four Bs and four Cs. She graduated ninth in a class of 72 and received subject prize in bookkeeping and accounts and the proficiency and distinction awards. Eleanor is the recipient of a Bursary Scholarship to attend COB where she plans to study financial accounting with a minor in technology.
The Tara Xavier Hepburn Foundation was launched on December 2006 to celebrate the life of Hepburn, an exceptional young Bahamian who died at the age of 30 while studying law, after having completed a psychology degree. Out of pain and grief and trying to cope with the loss, Hepburn's family decided to keep Tara's memory alive through scholarship for students in high school.
The Foundation is dedicated to the holistic development of young people by empowering them to achieve a positive sense of self and to realize their full potential as productive, responsible and contributing citizens. A key goal of the foundation is to encourage young Bahamians to take maximum responsibility for improving themselves.
The Tara Xavier Hepburn Foundation Scholarship is made possible by donations from Lyndhurst Limited, Patricia Vouch, Giovanna Knowles, Richard Campbell Limited, Dr. Livingston Marshall and the Anglican Central Education Authority.
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