The North Thurston Education Foundation has awarded scholarships with a total value of $181,500 to 46 graduating seniors from North Thurston Public Schools.

“We are delighted to award scholarships to 46 of our graduating NTPS seniors. Our selection process was very competitive this year due to the high quality of our student applications. These students, who spent most of their final two years of high school learning online, are articulate, strong, and resilient. It is an honor to support them as they take their next steps in life. We are thankful to our gracious donors who support the North Thurston Education Foundation Scholarship program. Due to their generosity, several newly named scholarships were offered this year. We appreciate the kindness of this community and their support of our students and schools, “ said Beth Utto-Galarneau, Scholarship Chair.

Scholarships awarded range from $2,000 to $14,000. Applications were evaluated on several factors, including academic achievement, school and community activities, references, quality of the required essay and financial need.

Named Scholarships: The scholarship program includes designated named endowed scholarships and Foundation-funded scholarships.
In 2021, 20 named scholarships were awarded to the following students:

Alex Ward Memorial Scholarship – Joseph Oliver – North Thurston
Bakala State Farm Scholarship – Paige Madrid – River Ridge
Bill Williams Memorial Scholarship – Makayla Hamlin – River Ridge
Charles E. Callahan Education Scholarship – Austin Caswell – North Thurston
Colton Thorstrom Smith Scholarship – Cindy Villa Cervantes – River Ridge
Lisa Corwin Memorial Scholarship – Samir Amin – North Thurston
Davies Vocational-Technical Scholarship – Garrett Whitely – River Ridge
Frank Parker Memorial Scholarship – Julie Vu – Timberline
Friends and Family Scholarship – Danielle Hunter – Timberline
James Koval Memorial Scholarship – Austin Benjamin – River Ridge
Jeannette Hostetter Ford Memorial Scholarship-  Ja’Lynn Howard – River Ridge
John Gott Education Scholarship – Aaron Kelly – Timberline
Roy Pedersen Memorial Scholarship – Taja Brooks – Timberline
Dr. G. Sue Shannon Scholarship – Keikilani Naipo – Timberline
Nicholas T. Walker Scholarship – Baylen Ratliff – River Ridge
United Youth Movement Scholarship – David Guillen – Timberline
Lewis R. Hawthorne & Edna C. Hawthorne Scholarships –
Mateo Abadesco – Timberline
Corbin Reeves – Timberline
Ethan Warner – North Thurston
Haven Barnes – North Thurston

Foundation Scholarships: Foundation Scholarships are awarded annually. In 2021, 26 foundation scholarships were awarded to the following students:

North Thurston High School: Rhea Lynne Herradura, Joel Hugdahl, Kaiana Delos Santos, Zachary Mayer, Shane Avery, Sage Barnes, Nicole Krambs and Dylan Sutton

River Ridge High School: Annabelle Kirkwood, Chloe Buchanan, Chandler Ketelsen, Jeremy Stalcup, Keyona Tartt and Makayli Taylor

Timberline High School: Myia Avent, Natalie Nguyen, Sarah Horlacher, Seiji Naotsuka, Natalie Scott, Kailynn Faltenberger, Noelani Allison, Eli Bell, Benjamin Rim, Chloey Olson, Elise MacDonald and Kodi Smith-Cruz

Sixteen of the scholarships are named after individuals in the community and funded by bequests from or donations on behalf of the persons they are named. The remaining scholarships were funded solely by the Foundation’s annual fund-raising and by an unrestricted grant from the Dawkins Charitable Trust. To view a list of scholarship establishment history and details, visit: https://ntef.org/special-named-endowed-scholarships/.
Congratulations students and best of luck with all your future endeavors!