By Millicent Stanton
AAUW Publicity Committee
An audience of parents, friends and members of the American Association of University Women, known as AAUW, honored girls from schools all over Whidbey Island at their April 14 meeting.
AAUW works all year to raise funds to give a $2,000 scholarship to each of the three public high schools and to give stipends to junior girls selected by their teachers as outstanding students in math, science and technology.
Also, a program called Tech Trek was started last year to send middle school girls to have a camp experience immersed in the STEM subjects of science, math, engineering and technology. The purpose of these scholarships and awards is to support girls with an interest and strong motivation for higher education to be able to attend colleges and especially to foster those who show a talent with STEM subjects.
Carol Rice, chair of the event, shared the passion the Whidbey Branch of AAUW has for supporting girls and their education. Jessica Koeberle, who started the Tech Trek program, introduced the following middle school awardees: Hannah Samuels from North Whidbey Middle School, Ayla Randolph from Oak Harbor Middle School, Emma Smith from Home Connection, Anna Dion from Coupeville Middle School and Arianna Marshall Langley Middle School.
Samuels was described by teachers as a creative student who hoped to change the world with her love of math and science. Randolph hoped that the Tech Trek experience would help her reach her dream of medical research. Smith thought Tech Trek might fire her imagination in new directions for math and science and is interested in green alternatives for the world. Dion would like to be a pediatrician and sees Tech Trek as helping her on her path. Marshall would use her skills in observation to help make the world better through science.
Teachers nominated these junior girls in high school who received small stipends for being leading achievers in science, math and technology. The three science winners were Patricia Sabian, Oak Harbor High School; Makana Stone, Coupeville High School; and Amara Garibyan, South Whidbey High School.
Mathematics winners were Mallorie Mitchum, South Whidbey High School; Destiny Cleary, Coupeville High School; and Helena Webster, Oak Harbor High School. In technology these girls excelled: McKenzie Bailey, Coupeville High School; Katherine Matazzoni, Oak Harbor High School; and Lucy Clements, South Whidbey High School. The girls showed a range of interests, combining humanitarian purposes with environmental and architectural interests as well as a knack for graphic design and yearbook innovations.
The highlight of the evening was the awarding of the $2,000 scholarships.
Amanda Hoesman-Foley of Coupeville High School would like to be an elementary school teacher. She is eligible for the Presidential Scholarship Award, which shows her love of academics. She has been a student body officer throughout high school. She has participated in People to People programs, learning about other cultures.
Isla Dubendorf of South Whidbey High School is also a Washington Scholars Award winner. She has an interest in veterinary medicine and has been admitted as one of the select group of honors research students in Washington.
Eri Horikawa of Oak Harbor High School was introduced by Angie Homola, who chaired the selection committee for all three scholarships winners. Homola spoke of the high caliber of entrants this year and the difficulty in narrowing the choices to only three finalists. Horikawa showed her high commitment to others by volunteering at Whidbey General Hospital and hopes to be a speech therapist after attending the University of Washington.
The evening closed with a round of applause for the girls and a special applause for the teachers and parents of the girls.
