First-year students awarded $100,000, $80,000 STEM scholarships

Sep 9th, 2022

Jill Hunt

Two incoming first-year students at Memorial University have been named 2022 recipients of Schulich Leader Scholarships.

Jason Matthews is the recipient of an award valued at $80,000 and is a graduate of Pasadena Academy in Pasadena, N.L.

Samantha Morgan is a graduate of Roncalli Central High School in Colliers, N.L., and is the recipient of an award valued at $100,000.

Established in 2012 by Canadian business leader and philanthropist Seymour Schulich, the annual scholarship program encourages Canada’s most promising high school graduates to pursue degrees in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) disciplines and become the next generation of innovators.

Jason Matthews

Mr. Matthews joins Memorial with plans to pursue a bachelor of science degree with joint honours in computer science and statistics.

Jason Matthews smiles at the camera with a white background behind him.
Jason Matthews
 PHOTO: SUBMITTED PHOTO

“I have had a deep love for math and computer science since I was young,” said Mr. Matthews. “Learning about new topics in math and finding lectures online is a regular past-time for me. My love for math and computer science makes my journey of pursing an undergraduate degree feel like an adventure! I see an exciting lifetime of innovation ahead for me.”

Mr. Matthews says he’s excited to stay in the province and live on the east coast during his time at Memorial.

Samantha Morgan

Ms. Morgan is coming to Memorial to pursue a bachelor of engineering degree.

Samantha Morgan smiles at the camera with a white background behind her.
First-year student Samantha Morgan
 PHOTO: SUBMITTED

“I feel my positive attitude, natural leadership ability and my dedication to problem-solving will allow me to become a trusted member of Memorial’s engineering community,” said Ms. Morgan. “I plan to strive to make real change in the electric industry and I believe that this Schulich scholarship can help make this dream a reality.”

Ms. Morgan says that one of the main reasons she chose Memorial is because of the co-operative education option in the engineering program.

“For me, attending Memorial was an obvious choice.”

Schulich leaders

Through the Schulich Foundation, these prestigious entrance scholarships are awarded to 100 high school graduates enrolling in a STEM undergraduate program at 20 partner universities in Canada.

Every high school in Canada can submit one Schulich leader nominee per academic year based on academic excellence in STEM, entrepreneurial leadership and financial need.

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