Diamond Bar Teen Earns $10,000 Scholarship

A Diamond Bar teen is one of 16 legally blind, college-bound high school seniors to receive a $10,000 scholarship.

Jewish Guild Healthcare awarded Mi So Kwak, a Diamond Bar High student, with a scholarship as part of the organization's GuildScholar Program. The agency awards the scholarships prior to September 2013, before the academic year begins for most schools.

Recipients are enrolled in high schools nationwide including awardees in Calfornia, Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wisconsin. 

“We’re mindful of the often unexpectedly large sums of money needed to accomplish a successful transition from high school to a college or university and we think that this scholarship money can be put to excellent use during this phase,” said Alan R. Morse, president and CEO of The Guild.

“At The Guild, we are committed to working toward a more inclusive society. The GuildScholar program will help assure that more blind students are able to enroll in colleges or universities that might otherwise be beyond their reach financially,” Dr. Morse continued. “We’re not concerned with their fields of study, but we are eager to help in the education of this country’s next generation of leaders, a group that must include persons with vision impairment."

Each student who applied had to write an essay about a teacher whose encouragment made a great difference in their lives. One teacher highlighted was awarded a $5,000 grant.

Academic excellence, community involvement, legal blindness, financial need, and U.S. citizenship also were reviewed in deciding who would receive the 16 scholarships.

The GuildScholar Program was created, in part, through a grant from the Jeannette A. Klarenmeyer Trust.