simonscholars

Simon Scholars Program Offers Life-Changing Opportunity to NMUSD Students
News

Simon Scholars Program Offers Life-Changing Opportunity to NMUSD Students

The library at Costa Mesa High School (CMHS) is filled with attentive 10th-graders as Juan Sigala begins his presentation on the Simon Scholar Program. All eyes are on the assistant director of scholar recruitment as he asks general questions about the challenges they believe they face in getting into college, tossing out yellow star-shaped stress balls to anyone who answers. On the screen behind Sigala is a photo of CMHS graduate

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College Access

California State University to Close Campuses for In-Person Instruction This Fall  

California State University system will continue to be held online through the fall 2020 term because of the spread of the coronavirus. Keeping classes online is necessary because of “evolving data surrounding the progression” of the virus, Chancellor Tim White said during a CSU trustee meeting, alluding to public health experts forecasting further waves of the virus later this year. He left the door open, however, to resuming some in-person

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Alumni Pave The Way

Ruby Mejia’s Interview

Today, we wanted to introduce an amazing alumni leader that is paving the way for future Simon Scholars in the educational field. Ruby Mejia graduated from California State University, Fullerton and is currently a Spanish teacher at Newport Mesa Unified School District. As a proactive alumni she continues to be involved with the Simon Scholars Alumni group and volunteers her time mentoring high school and college scholars. Click the video

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College Access

UC’s Announcement Regarding the Class of 2021 SAT and ACT Testing

The University of California announced on Tuesday, March 31 that they will take a number of steps to temporarily adjust admissions requirements, so students and families will have one less thing to worry about during this COVID-19 pandemic. The measures include suspending the letter grade requirement for academic classes taken in winter, spring or summer terms of 2020; providing flexibility for students who need more time to meet registration, deposit

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College Scholars Tomorrow

Chapman Physician Assistant Simon Scholarship Opportunity

This year we announced an exciting new scholarship opportunity for graduate students, the Simon Scholars Physician Assistant Program at Chapman University. This program provides 10 full-tuition scholarships a year and is designed to help fill a critical need in the healthcare field for more Physician Assistants (PAs). Like the Simon Scholars Program, it provides opportunities for underserved students to move from “adversity to accomplishment” and, in this case, to earn

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Meaningful Events

Bi-Annual Parent Engagement Meeting

Earlier this year, we had our most successful bi-annual parent engagement meetings hosted at two partner high schools in our respected Orange County and San Diego County regions. Over 200 parents attended the meeting(s) where presentations were customized by our Program Coordinators to fit our junior and senior scholars needs. The junior presentation featured topics like the importance of fly-in programs, college tours, and summer productive programs. They also had an opportunity to review

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Meaningful Events

2020 February College Tours

This February 2020 our junior scholars had an opportunity to visit nine different colleges in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington DC. The Simon Scholar program encourages scholars to have a well-balanced college list by the end of their junior year, and what a better way to begin building their college list then by visiting some of our partner schools like the University of San Francisco, Stanford University, George Washington

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Emory student named 2018 Rhodes Scholar
Awards & Distictions

Emory student named 2018 Rhodes Scholar

Emory University senior Chelsea Jackson is one of 32 American college students selected as a 2018 Rhodes Scholar. Jackson, a political science and African American Studies double major in Emory College of Arts and Sciences, is the university’s 20th student to be selected for the prestigious scholarship that provides all expenses for two or three years of study at the University of Oxford in England. She also is the fourth

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Taequann Davidson
Awards & Distictions

Aspiring Artist Finds Affirmation Through Kennedy Center Internship

For aspiring musical artist Taequann Davidson ’18, it was a defining moment in his internship when the stars aligned for his personal and professional goals. As the music world weighed in that LL Cool J would make history as the first rap musician to be saluted at the Kennedy Center Honors, Davidson saw a brighter future for his career goals. Having spent four months interning at the John F. Kennedy Center for

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Awards & Distictions

Future UCLA student overcomes family challenges with deportation, gangs, jail, drugs

As a middle schooler, Ashley Sotelo was following an all too familiar path. Her brothers skirted in and out of trouble. Her parents, who had little education, struggled to make ends meet. And Sotelo and her friends just drifted. “I thought maybe smoking weed was cool,” said Sotelo. “I hung out with the wrong crowd.” By the time she was in the seventh grade, her two older brothers had dropped

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