Comcast’s Washington state team is proud to honor High School seniors Yaffet Bedru (Kentridge High School), Katherine Munoz-Castano (Kent-Meridian High School), Lisa Ha (Kent-Meridian High School), Nede Ovbiebo (Christian Faith High School), Brian Hwang (Decatur High School) and Addyson Jones (Auburn Mountainview High School) for being among 42 high school seniors throughout Washington state to be a part of our annual Leaders and Achievers Scholarship Program.
This year, the Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation awarded $105,000 in scholarships to help students in their first year of college. These 42 best and brightest high school seniors each received a $2,500 scholarship for their outstanding community service, academic performance, and leadership skills.
A Special Digital Celebration During COVID-19
The high school senior class of 2020 found itself in an especially tough situation due to COVID19 and its impact on the school year and their graduation celebrations. They did not get the chance to say goodbye to lifelong classmates, thank their teachers and experience the pomp and circumstance of a live graduation like so many generations before them.
To provide them with a special congratulations and celebration, Comcast partnered with these leaders to host a series of digital events across the state to honor the winners. In King County, the company’s Regional Senior Vice President Rodrigo Lopez joined Mayor Angela Birney of Redmond and Mayor Dana Ralph of Kent to lead a digital graduation event for these local students.
During the Comcast Digital Graduation Party, students had the opportunity to hear from these local leaders, solicit advice on life after high school and how to handled the post-high school transition, as well as ask questions about how the current impact of events like the global pandemic and our country’s social justice issues are impacting our communities. In all, it was an informative and special experience for the students and for the leaders, as both sides were able to give authentic answers to questions and have an open, honest conversation while celebrating this year’s high school class.
The Comcast Leaders and Achievers Scholarship Program provides scholarships to students who strive to achieve their full potential, who are catalysts for positive change in their communities, who are involved in their schools, and who serve as models for their fellow students. To date, more than $30 million has been awarded to nearly 28,000 students nationwide through the Comcast Leaders and Achievers Scholarship Program.
“Thank you to Comcast for organizing such a special event. It was wonderful to be a part of something that honored the high school class of 2020 and some of its highest achievers,” said Mayor Dana Ralph of Kent. “Our world has changed so much this year and these young leaders excelled throughout a lot of uncertainty. The perseverance they showed is a trait that all future leaders must have, and after speaking with these students it is easy to see that they are on their way to having a lasting impact on our communities.”
The philosophy behind Leaders and Achievers is to give young people every opportunity to prepare for he future and to engage them in their communities. The program also demonstrates the importance of civic involvement, and the value placed on civic involvement by the business community.
“We are honored to recognize the amazing achievements of our Leaders and Achievers Scholarship winners and to help them further their education,” said Rodrigo Lopez, Regional Senior Vice President for Comcast in Washington state. “The students endured so much this year and it was great to be able to give them a special event with these local mayors. These young leaders represent the bright future of the communities in King County at a time when there are so many uncertainties in this world, and Comcast is proud to support them.”
To learn more about Leaders and Achievers Scholarship Program and potential updates for the
