Looking at schools from the average person’s point of view, you will note that each and every institution has their own distinct history and reputation. Delving deeper, you will discover a multitude of different personalities in both the student and staff populations. Now, just beyond that, is when you start discerning different individuals who are full of ambitious potential.
Zoey Stormes is one of said individuals with her recent achievement of the Carr Distinguished Scholarship to Angelo State University.
“When my application was chosen I had to commit to an interview on campus, then I was chosen among all those who interviewed for the scholarship,” Stormes said.
There are six levels of financial aid offered through the Carr scholarship foundation: Distinguished, Excellence, Fellow, Academic, Gold and Blue. All offering a variety of aid amount with different qualifications, Distinguished is the highest level to reach with $15,000 per year. To qualify for this particular scholarship aspect, Stormes had to score a 32-36 on the ACT, a 1400-1600 on the SAT, and maintain a 3.5 – 4.0 GPA.
“I took the SAT four times, two of which was to get my score up to qualify for the top level scholarship [and] I had to build a resume and cover letter and spent a lot of time with my KCAL counselor going over my responses to the online questionnaire. I missed a day of school for interview,” Stormes explained. “I probably spent most of my spare time in the fall semester working towards some aspect of the scholarship, either SAT practice or question responses.”
Hoping to follow her passion of science, Stormes plans on first working towards a Bachelor in biology and then specialize in a microbiology field for her Masters and Doctorate.
“I want to do research in microbiology or work for the CDC,” Stormes said.
Receiving this scholarship completes Stormes freshman goal of being a well rounded student for she “wanted to have a bit of involvement in all [her] interests”. Actively involved on campus through AP classes, ASL, science UIL, and as one of the swim team captains, she has successfully found a balance.
“Most people don’t think about everything they have been involved in everyday and looking back I realized how much time I volunteered at swim and ASL and I realized how I stepped up to be a leader in groups like ASL club and at KCAL,” Stormes recounted.
Likewise, she was also focused on living up or even surpassing a family legacy.
“My mom went to ASU on a lower level of the scholarship and I wanted to lower the cost of my first degree,” Stormes detailed.
Stormes, an ambitious, talented entity, already learned a lot for the scholarship itself, including valuable life lessons about acknowledging your proud moments and living in the moment.
“I think from now on, every few years I’m going to look back and count what I achieve and review how much I have grown,” she said. “It was a real confidence booster and I think it helped me grow up some to reflect and feel accomplished.”