Three WHS students receive $20K scholarship

Three Wrangell High School students are a step closer to their dream of a college degree as they each received a $20,000 scholarship to pay for post-high school education and living expenses.

The Sasayama Scholarships, which is named in memory of Tadao Sasayama, the first president of Alaska Pulp Corporation, are given to a choice group of WHS students each year – and the 2013 recipients were named on Monday, May 6.

Seniors MiKayla Stokes, Loranzo Silva and Haley Reed will each receive $5,000 a year for the next four years as they attend colleges and universities around the Lower 48.

The Alaska Community Foundation now manages the funds for the Wrangell-based scholarship. Including the 2012-13 school year, a total of 49  Sasayama/APC scholarships will have been awarded to WHS graduates since the first awards were given in 1992, 21 years ago.

Frank Roppel is one of the members of the selection committee along with Bill Privett and Barbara Angerman. He said the group was happy to make the financial aid available to the trio.

“Each of you had outstanding applications for the scholarship,” he said. “You are sure deserving and we are pleased to be able to make these scholarship awards available to you.”

Reed, who plans on attending Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles to study screenwriting, said the scholarship was essential to her being able to attend the school of her choice.

“It’s an amazing scholarship to have because it gives an opportunity specifically to Wrangell students,” she said. “It’s a lot of money to have for school and I really would not have the chance to go to LMU if it weren’t for this scholarship.”

Stokes will attend Dixie State College in St. George, Utah, while Silva will attend Whitman College in Walla Walla, Wash. Both Stokes and Silva say they plan on studying pre-med.