Menlo Park Kiwanis Club Awards $50,000 in scholarships to Menlo-Atherton High School seniors

Ten  Menlo-Atherton High School seniors received scholarships at the Kiwanis Club’s annual scholarship luncheon, Tuesday, May 22, at the Allied Arts Guild.

For more than 40 years, the Menlo Park Kiwanis Club has provided college scholarships to Menlo-Atherton graduating seniors, based on academic performance. More than $1.1 million has been awarded to local students during the lifetime of the Club’s scholarship program. This year’s scholarship awards totaled $50,000.

The 10 scholarship winners for 2018 are:

• Lizbeth Betancourt plans to attend University of California-Merced to study Management and Busiess Economics.
• Lynn Butzlaff will be attending Kenyon College in Ohio to study English and Creative Writing.
• Stella Kailahi was the winner of the Anna May Duncan Memorial Scholarship. She will be attending San Diego State studying courses that will lead to a career in either Public Halth or Athletic Training.
• Schuyler Knapp received the Les Cutting Memorial Scholarship. He plans to study Chemical Engineering at Washington Univeristy in St. Louis, Missouri.
• Karl Liebner plans to study Environmental Science and Management at University of California-Davis.
• Leslie Ochoa will be attending Loyola Marymount College in Los Angeles. She plans to study Psychology.
• Damara Ortega was awarded the William D. Martin Memorial Scholarship. She will attend the University of California-Merced studying Psychology and other classes that will lead her to a career in Physical Therapy.
• Anysleydi Sandoval will focus on Public Health studies when she attends University of California-Merced this fall.
• Isabelle Sapountzis received the Damon Wedding Memorial Scholarship. She will be in a Pre-Med program at Colgate University located in Central New York State.
• Yacaranday Saray Vazquez plans to attend San Jose State and will take courses in in Business, Accounting and Policing which she hopes will lead to a career in Probation work.

“We interview many students graduating from M-A to learn more about their academic achievements, commitments to service, and plans for college,” said John Martin, chair of the Kiwanis Club’s Scholarship Committee. “In addition to their academic honors, the 10 finalists have a broad range of interests, and each has expressed them through extensive school and community involvement. This year’s scholarship winners are exceptional and very motivated. They are tomorrow’s leaders, and we hope our Kiwanis scholarships help them achieve their dreams.”

In addition, earlier in 2018, the Menlo Park Kiwanis Club gave $5,000 to the M-A Football Association to fund a new program that helps players visit colleges and football camps in pursuit of scolarships. This effort has already resulted in five scholarship offers for M-A Bear football players, with more than 10 offers pending or expected.

Photo Caption: Front row: Lisbeth Betancourt, Leslie Ochoa, Yacaranday Saray Vazquez, Damara Ortega, Anysleydi Sandoval, Isabelle Sapountzis, Karl Liebner and John Martin, Chair of the Kiwanis Club’s Scholarship Committee. Back row: Stella Kailahi, Schuyler Knapp, Kiwanis Club President Brian Rigonan, and Lynn Butzlaff.