These graduating Wildcats are ready to take on the world – Lake Highlands

It’s scholarship season in Lake Highlands, Texas — that beautiful time of year when nonprofit organizations distribute thousands of dollars to enable graduating seniors at Lake Highlands High to pursue college degrees.

Take a moment to swell with pride at the accomplishments of these students and the futures that lie ahead for them. You may not be one of the fat cat donors who contributed thousands to the Lake Highlands Women’s League, the Exchange Club of Lake Highlands or other organization, but if you purchased an event ticket, bought an auction item, sported a t-shirt or supported these groups in your own modest way, it’s time to take a bow right along with these amazing students. (And if you are a fat cat donor, thank you!)

Some scholarships are awarded based on merit, and others are given based on need. During the lengthy application and interview process, most applicants demonstrated both qualities. I had a chance Monday to speak to a few recipients in AVID — Advancement Via Individual Determination — and year-after-year, Wildcats in that program make up a large percentage of the scholarship winners. AVID gives additional college preparatory support to students whose families may not have attended college and encourages them to take advanced courses and aim high in their college pursuits.

When Chinwendu Ugokwe was 12 years old, she came to America from Lagos, Nigeria with her parents and four younger siblings. Her folks were seeking better educational opportunities for their children and improved healthcare for her mom. As she prepares now to graduate, Ugokwe sees the sacrifices they made and the debt she owes.

“They saw this country as a place where education is both valued and readily accessible, where healthcare is considered a fundamental right rather than a luxury and where diverse individuals can unite in pursuit of shared dreams,” she said. “Their choice to migrate was rooted in a deep desire to secure the best possible future for their children.”

Ugokwe is weighing her options between attending the University of Texas and the University of North Texas, where she’ll major in biology on a pre-med track. Her long-term goal is to attend medical school and become an anesthesiologist. “What excites me the most about this next step is the opportunity to meet other students who share my passion and interests in advancing the future of healthcare,” she said.

Ugokwe admits she was sometimes overwhelmed adapting to the American educational system — where laptops, Advanced Placement classes, dual college enrollment and even choosing one’s own courses is commonplace. That’s why she’d share a few tips with her freshman self if she had the chance.

“Trust in your own abilities and don’t let setbacks define your self-worth. It’s perfectly okay to encounter difficulties; what’s important is maintaining a positive outlook and persevering through adversity,” she would suggest.

Cayden Byrd’s life was upended when his family moved from Dallas to Sasebo, Japan. He was just 12 years old and in an unfamiliar place with his younger brother when his stepfather shipped out with the Navy and his mother traveled to California for the complicated birth of his baby sister. Left to their own devices and dealing with the onslaught of the new pandemic, Byrd admits he frequently overslept and missed online school sessions. With his grades slipping, he made a conscious effort to turn things around.

“I completed all my assignments, caught up on overdue work and managed to finish the school year with a 3.7 GPA,” he recalled. He also developed resourcefulness and money management techniques, since the boys were responsible for their own transportation and meals.

“It’s not the challenging situations that happen in life, but how you handle and react to them,” he said. “Despite the numerous challenges my family and I faced, including relocating overseas, dealing with COVID and the birth of my sister, I’m grateful for the experiences and lessons gained during this time. I had the opportunity to immerse myself in a new culture, learn a new language and make friends from around the world. Although these challenges were daunting, they gave me a fresh perspective on the world and a deep appreciation for the beauty of different cultures.”

Byrd has earned a wrestling scholarship at Ouachita Baptist University, where he will study kinesiology and work to become a physical therapist.

When Ana Ramos Cresencios was a little girl, she dreamed of becoming a doctor. Her parents didn’t have the money to purchase a doctor’s outfit for career day in second grade, so she wore an old white shirt for a lab coat and a blue t-shirt for scrubs. The final touch was blue rubber gloves saved from a medical appointment.

Cresencio’s father got sick when she was nine, and she spent lots of time with medical professionals in real scrubs and gowns. After he died, she realized how many of his nurses made an impact on his life — and hers. She became responsible for helping to provide for her family financially, and she decided nursing was the pathway to fulfilling her dreams.

“I know that going into the medical field I will see many sad situations. However, my whole life I have been surrounded by sadness, but I see it as an opportunity to help people prioritize their health,” she said. “I have felt helpless in the past, but a degree and a career in nursing would enable me to help my family and my patients. I will be a provider of care and financial stability.”

Cresencio tackled honors anatomy and physiology her senior year, knowing few students enroll in the notoriously difficult course — and even fewer finish it. She spent two hours per day reviewing and rewriting class notes, and she found online YouTube videos to gain access to additional information and perspectives. She recently earned a 93 on the comprehensive exam.

Money is tight in Cresencio’s household — the family of six all sleep in one bedroom while the other bedroom is rented to an extended family member. That’s why she’s so determined to use her medical expertise to provide healthcare at free clinics in indigent communities. She wants to make a difference.

Begin a discussion on thermodynamics and fluid mechanics, and Bryan Reyes is in his element. He’s headed to the University of Texas to study mechanical engineering, and he couldn’t be more excited to tackle the most challenging coursework Austin has to offer.

“I’ve always been interested in how things work,” he recalled. “As a kid, I would break things open to see all the parts that made an object work. I would break pens, clocks and especially anything that had wheels.”

Reyes never outgrew his love of cars, and his childhood hobby has evolved into a professional passion. He now competes against some of the greatest drivers in the world in a simulation service titled iRacing. He also enjoys designing and 3D printing mechanical machines, such as simple clocks or gears.

Despite his confidence in the classroom, one seemingly simple task recently threw him for a loop. He received the Exchange Club Character Counts Award, which required him to give a brief speech to the organization’s members.

“It was daunting to learn that I would have to speak in front of people I had never met before, and to say I was nervous would be denying my true emotion,” he said. “To add to my distress, people from my school would also be there, along with my family and the families of the recipients. I had restless nights worrying that I might mess up while I was speaking to all these people, but when the day of the event came, none of that mattered. As I waited anxiously for my turn to speak, the free unlimited breakfast they offered seemed unavailable to me, as I couldn’t even take a bite due to my fear.”

Exchangites were none the wiser about Reyes’ anxiety, and charming the audience boosted his confidence. “I know I will apply this learning experience whenever I encounter another public speaking opportunity,” he said.

Before she left her native country of Eritrea, Yorsaliem Wahsom could see her future stretching out before her. Girls aren’t permitted to continue their education in that part of East Africa — they’re expected to marry and have babies. Luckily, her mother had other plans.

Wahsom and her family moved to Ethiopia, then to America, where she was amazed to find that girls are considered equal here, and young women are encouraged to attend high school — even college.

“Getting situated wasn’t easy at first,” she said of arriving at age eight with her mom and two older siblings, “but we started from step one. We began by learning English, and we worked to build the life we want.”

Wahsom has earned UTD’s prestigious Terry Scholarship to study psychology.

“Being in this community has shown me that women can do everything the men are doing. Back home we don’t have that. We don’t get to see a woman in engineering or other fields considered just for men. Programs like AVID and these scholarships are open to all. They encourage everyone to take opportunities and use them.”

AVID teaches college-level note-taking skills and helps students keep their calendars and assignments organized. LHHS AVID Coordinator Kerri Macy and her staff also practice “soft skills” with students, such as public speaking, interviewing, “dressing for success” and applying for internships.

“AVID keeps you responsible to do the things you’re supposed to do in class,” said Wahsom, “but it also helps you find the many opportunities that are out there.”

Each of the students gushed with gratitude for the support they’ve received from teachers and members of the community along the way, and they all said they’d look for a way to pay it forward.

“I want to give a very big thank you for investing in our future and helping with this journey and whatever we become — which I’m sure will be great since they are helping with this first step,” said Ugokwe. “Without them we wouldn’t be able to go to college in the first place.”

“If we weren’t given this financial help, some of us wouldn’t go as far as we can go,” agreed Wahsom. “Thank you for the opportunity, and hopefully we’ll be able to give back one day.”

The full list of scholarship recipients hasn’t yet been released by the Lake Highlands Women’s League or the Exchange Club of Lake Highlands, but watch for the five students listed above. And keep them on your radar as they go out into the big, wide world to do mighty things.