The Guaranteed Rate Foundation announced the winners of its Entrepreneur and Leader Scholarship program for the 2014-2015 school year.
The program provides college scholarships of up to $10,000 per year, for up to four years, towards tuition and study materials for students with demonstrated entrepreneurial and leadership qualities. To date, approximately $100,000 in scholarship funds have been awarded. Now, in an effort to support the next generation of leaders, the Guaranteed Rate Foundation expanded the program this year to include two additional scholarships for children and grandchildren of real estate industry professionals.
Four students from across the nation were selected to receive the scholarships beginning in the 2014-2015 school year based on essays supporting their entrepreneurial and leadership qualities, recommendations and interviews. They are (listed alphabetically):
►Caston Awadzi, Wheaton, Ill., who will be attending Howard University in Washington, D.C. Awadzi started a web streaming business focused on commentary for the gaming community. He has not yet decided on a major, but hopes to eventually work in venture capital investment. He is a graduate of Wheaton Warrenville High School.
►Royce Branning, Menlo Park, Calif., who will be attending the University of Notre Dame. Branning is one of the co-creators of Closetclicks, an e-commerce and social media platform for women’s fashion that is currently meeting with angel investors. He plans to major in computer science. He is a graduate of Menlo-Atherton High School.
►Jacqueline Hart, Holliston, Mass., who attends Clarkson University in Potsdam, N.Y. Hart helped to start a smoothie company with fellow students on campus, to which she was recently promoted to CEO. A business studies major, she hopes to eventually start a consulting firm to help startup companies thrive. She is a graduate of Holliston High School.
►Patrick Lindmark, St. Louis, Mo., who attends George Washington University in Washington, D.C. Lindmark helped to found and currently serves as treasurer of the campus chapter of the ONE Campaign, which is an international campaigning and advocacy organization taking action to end extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa. An international studies major, he hopes to become an advisor to U.S. companies on the benefits and opportunities of investing in African economies. He is a graduate of St. Louis Priory School.
Recipients of the scholarships will also have the opportunity to participate in the Guaranteed Rate summer intern program, where they will receive additional training and leadership education and possibly earn school credit.
