As of 1 June, chapters have dedicated 21,928 hours, touched the lives of 18,616 people and raised $5,753.66 towards SPARK a Change since its launch in July 2014. These collective actions are impacting the lives of youth around the globe! (Chapter leaders, please remember to record your events on the Golden Key website promptly after the event so we can include your accomplishments in our monthly statistics.)
Follow SPARK a Change on social media. Each month, Headquarters will be posting a challenge and a contest for SPARK a Change. Be sure to follow Golden Key on Facebook and Twitter as well as SPARK on Instagram for articles on the benefits of volunteering and posts featuring great SPARK events. If you think your chapter has a great event, please email your event details and pictures to: khiatt@goldenkey.org.
June Featured Service Project:
This month, we’d like to highlight the GK chapter at the University of the Virgin Islands- St Croix. They worked with their university to set up a tour of the campus for 400 students at Juanita Gardine Elementary School. Golden Key members gave speeches about the importance of aiming high and striving for success with an emphasis on the importance of academics, leadership and service.  The speeches tasked students to do well academically, to take charge as future leaders and to get involved in their communities through service projects and lending a helping hand to someone in need. The purpose of the event was to instill the importance of education and literacy in students from an early age as a way to plant the seed for them to strive to reach their potentials.

 

This week we’ve announced the recipients of our biggest awards from fall of 2014:

• The Graduate Scholar Award ($10,000) winners
• The Undergraduate Achievement Scholarship ($5,000) winners
• The Education Debt Reduction Award ($5,000) winners

Today, we’re excited to display the recipients of the remaining fall 2014 headquarters awards. These scholarships make up part of the $1,000,000 we award annually to members.
The winners of the remaining Fall 2014 scholarships, in no particular order, are:
Achieving Success Award: For Transfer Students ($1,000)

• Shaun Flynn, Swinburne University of Technology, Australia
• Todd Santee, University of Colorado Denver, United States
• Javanese Fuller, Norfolk State University, United States

GEICO Life Scholarship ($1,000)

• Marissa Bane, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States
• Allison Fox, American Public University System, United States
• Albert Appouh, Rutgers-Newark, The State University of New Jersey, United States
• Charlotte Dobson, The University of Winnipeg, Canada
• Teidda Vejcik, Kaplan University, United States

Joan Nelson Study Abroad Scholarship ($2,500)

• Cikida Gcali, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

Research Grant ($1,000)

• MacKenzie Robertson, Simon Fraser University, Canada
• Ruth Martinez, Université de Montréal, Canada
• Maria Elizabeth Rodriguez-Ronderos, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, United States
• Kathleen Saul, University of Delaware, United States
• Jay Bhatt, University of Alabama at Birmingham, United States
• A’Kena LongBenton, Wayne State University, United States
• Andrew Colombo-Dougovito, University of Virginia, United States
• Katherine Evans, University of Alberta, Canada
• Ana Stevenson, The University of Queensland, Australia
• Adewale Akinfaderin, Florida State University, United States

Study Abroad Scholarship ($1,000)

• Matthew Bohmer, University of Tasmania, Australia
• Karilyn Brayall, University of Hawai’i at Manoa, United States
• Francis Buatti, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, United States
• Timothy Carew, Deakin University, Australia
• Laura Castle, Michigan State University, United States
• Kelvin Chai, RMIT University, Australia
• Thomas Landstedt, The University of New Mexico, United States
• Eric McDermott, The International Max Planck Research School, United States
• Connor Smith, University of Louisville, United States
• Alexander Stagg, Queensland University of Technology, Australia
• Michael York, Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta Indonesia, Australia
• Douglas Ramon, California State University, Los Angeles, United States
• Paige Chen, University of Canterbury, Australia
• James Ako Oben, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
• Megan Carvajal, Florida State University, United States
• Ali Borazjani, University of Tasmania, Australia
• Megan Smith, University of Missouri-St. Louis, United States
• Emma Ffrench-Mullen, Monash University, Australia
• Sarah Bouse, Rice University, United States
• Eroncia Berry, Jackson State University, United States
• Callie Blakey, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, United States
• Keaton Gairns, Dalhousie University, Canada
• Garrett Garcia, The University of Vermont, United States
• Michaela Gores, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, United States
• Brendon Gardner, Iowa State University, United States
• Erron Estrado, University of Miami, United States

Congratulations to the winners!

Want to become a scholarship winner? Well you have to apply first! The full listing is found here: https://www.goldenkey.org/scholarships-awards/listing/

Golden Key’s scholarship recipients embody the pillars for which Golden Key stands and we are delighted to assist them in making their dreams a reality. We realize that many college students today require assistance repaying the investment they have made in their education. We are committed to helping members further their education and academic pursuits, so we created the Education Debt Reduction Award, which assists members with repayment of student loans. We are excited to announce the winners of the Fall 2014 scholarship.
The recipients (in no particular order), who are awarded $5,000 USD each, are:

• Caleb Ballard, Northeastern University, United States
• Jerome Burnett, Howard University, United States
• Willem De Beer, University of Pretoria, South Africa
• Yitta Reich, McGill University, Canada
• Arun Looman, Southern Cross University, Australia
• Vasilka Chergarova, Florida International University, United States
• April Derrick, Arkansas State University, United States
• Leonard Moscatelli, Seton Hall University, United States
• Lasse Jepsen, Syracuse University, United States
• Doraine de Beer, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
• John Cummings, Arkansas State University, United States

And, this year we had a special award where one winner received $10,000 USD:

• Sharon Drye, University of South Alabama, United States

Congratulations to the winners!

Here’s what two of the winners had to say upon receiving the award…
“I am honored to be a 2014 Education Debt Reduction Scholarship winner. This is truly a blessing. It further proves that the Golden Key International Honor Society is committed to its members. It demonstrates their willingness to go above and beyond to ensure that their members succeed beyond graduation. I am proud to be a member of this organization and look forward to being a part of Golden Key in the future.” – Jerome O. Burnett
“I am sincerely honoured and grateful to receive the 2014 Golden Key Education Debt Reduction Scholarship. During my past four years of undergraduate studies I put every effort into maintaining the highest level of academic achievement possible, securing two science degrees (one medical and one environmental), a university medal, and an Australian Postgraduate Award (APA) scholarship to continue my research at Southern Cross University (SCU) as a PhD student. To me, receiving this award means more time in the lab and in the field furthering our understanding of the global terrestrial-aquatic carbon cycle, and less time working to keep on top of my accumulated student debt. I have found my Golden Key Chapter to be supportive and informative, and I am thankful for the recognition and motivation provided by my peers. I am confident that receiving this award will produce better outcomes not only for my future academic endeavours, but also for the future health of humankind and our greater environment.” – Arun Looman

Want to become a scholarship winner? Well you have to apply first! The full listing is found here: https://www.goldenkey.org/scholarships-awards/listing/