The Education Foundation of Teton Valley and Community Foundation of Teton Valley, in partnership, are proud to announce the first recipient of the newly established Richard Grundler College Scholarship.
The winning recipient, Julian Velazquez, a graduating senior from Teton High School will be attending the University of Denver this fall. As a freshman in high school, Mr. Velazquez was unclear about goals for his future and didn’t understand how important his GPA was when it came to being assessed. When the National Honor Society did not invite him to join because his GPA was too low to qualify, he began to reconsider his principles, values, and motivation. Rather than let the setback deter him, he began exploring more rigorous curricula, taking dual credit courses that allowed him to earn college credit while in high school. As a senior this year, he is on his way to being the first student at Teton High School to graduate with an Associates Degree and has been admitted to his dream school, University of Denver, in the Daniels College of Business.
Mr. Velazquez states, “to receive this scholarship is the same as receiving an opportunity to make a difference. An opportunity to continue to push through adversity and help innovate our present society towards a better future.” Mr. Richard Grundler and the scholarship committee congratulate Mr. Velazquez on his impressive accomplishments and are honored to invest in his future academic goals. There will be a celebration of this scholarship and awardee during the Higher Education Signing Ceremony taking place at Teton High School on May 26th at 6:30 pm.
The Richard Grundler College Scholarship was established through the generosity of local community member, Mr. Richard Grundler, with the goal of supporting a graduating Latino senior’s ability to attend an out-of-state university. The scholarship is worth $40,000 over four years. A scholarship selection committee consisting of community volunteers and representatives from the Education Foundation and Community Foundation of Teton Valley, was formed to review all applications and determine the final recipient.
“This was an incredibly competitive application process,” says Kristin Livingstone, the Executive Director of the Education Foundation of Teton Valley. “There are many students in our valley that are doing exceptional work and it was an honor to read their stories and learn more about what they hope to accomplish in the future. We received five applications and every applicant was worthy of the scholarship.”
The Education Data Initiative notes the average tuition for an out-of-state university costs $35,807 per year. The Richard Grundler Scholarship makes pursuing higher education at an out-of-state college a possibility for Latino students in Teton Valley. The Education Foundation, in partnership with the Community Foundation of Teton Valley, acting as the financial administrator, can offer this type of monetary support thanks to the generosity of a local community member. If you’d like to invest in this scholarship fund or create one of your own, please contact Tim Adams, Executive Director at the Community Foundation via 208-354-0230 or tadams@cftetonvalley.org. To discuss further opportunities to support Teton School District students interested in pursuing higher education, please reach out to Kristin Livingstone, executivedirector@tetoneducation.org.
The winning recipient, Julian Velazquez, a graduating senior from Teton High School will be attending the University of Denver this fall. As a freshman in high school, Mr. Velazquez was unclear about goals for his future and didn’t understand how important his GPA was when it came to being assessed. When the National Honor Society did not invite him to join because his GPA was too low to qualify, he began to reconsider his principles, values, and motivation. Rather than let the setback deter him, he began exploring more rigorous curricula, taking dual credit courses that allowed him to earn college credit while in high school. As a senior this year, he is on his way to being the first student at Teton High School to graduate with an Associates Degree and has been admitted to his dream school, the University of Denver, in the Daniels College of Business.
Mr. Velazquez states, “to receive this scholarship is the same as receiving an opportunity to make a difference. An opportunity to continue to push through adversity and help innovate our present society towards a better future.” Mr. Richard Grundler and the scholarship committee congratulate Mr. Velazquez on his impressive accomplishments and are honored to invest in his future academic goals. There will be a celebration of this scholarship and awardee during the Higher Education Signing Ceremony taking place at Teton High School on May 26th at 6:30 pm.
The Richard Grundler College Scholarship was established through the generosity of a local community member, Mr. Richard Grundler, with the goal of supporting a graduating Latino senior’s ability to attend an out-of-state university. The scholarship is worth $40,000 over four years. A scholarship selection committee consisting of community volunteers and representatives from the Education Foundation and Community Foundation of Teton Valley was formed to review all applications and determine the final recipient.
“This was an incredibly competitive application process,” says Kristin Livingstone, the Executive Director of the Education Foundation of Teton Valley. “There are many students in our valley that are doing exceptional work and it was an honor to read their stories and learn more about what they hope to accomplish in the future. We received five applications and every applicant was worthy of the scholarship.”
The Education Data Initiative notes the average tuition for an out-of-state university costs $35,807 per year. The Richard Grundler Scholarship makes pursuing higher education at an out-of-state college a possibility for Latino students in Teton Valley. The Education Foundation, in partnership with the Community Foundation of Teton Valley, acting as the financial administrator, can offer this type of monetary support thanks to the generosity of a local community member. If you’d like to invest in this scholarship fund or create one of your own, please contact Tim Adams, Executive Director at the Community Foundation via 208-354-0230 or tadams@cftetonvalley.org. To discuss further opportunities to support Teton School District students interested in pursuing higher education, please reach out to Kristin Livingstone, executivedirector@tetoneducation.org.
