Two Sikeston High School seniors awarded full, four-year scholarships to top U.S. colleges

SIKESTON — For the first time in Sikeston High School’s history, a student has been awarded a full, four-year scholarship and admission to a top college through QuestBridge.

And not only was one student awarded the scholarship, but two Sikeston seniors were selected to receive the 2020 QuestBridge National College Match Scholarship.

Trinity Land, daughter of Casey Clay of Sikeston, and Angel Huang, daughter of Glen and Donna Huang of Sikeston, were among 1,464 high school students nationwide to receive the scholarship through QuestBridge, a national program that connects high-achieving high school seniors from low-income backgrounds with full, four-year scholarships to the nation’s top colleges.

Out of over 18,500 applicants, QuestBridge selected 6,885 finalists to be considered for the QuestBridge match scholarship. This year, QuestBridge’s 42 college partners matched with the record 1,464 finalists who were recognized as Match Scholarship recipients.

Kim Thornbrough, senior counselor for Sikeston High School, said the school has had many qualified students apply for the Match Scholarship over the years and selected as finalists, but until this year, no SHS student had ever been selected to receive the scholarship.

“Not only do we have one student who has been selected for the first time, but we have two!” Thornbrough said.

She commended the students for their hard work over the past four years.

“They’ve worked hard to earn and now they’ll be rewarded for their work,” Thornbrough said.

Match Scholarship recipients are admitted early to QuestBridge college partners with full four-year scholarships that are provided by the colleges and universities with a purpose of ensuring for these students and their families that an education at a top college can be affordable.

QuestBridge’s 42 college partners include top liberal arts colleges such as Amherst, Pomona and Williams and exceptional research universities such as Columbia, Duke, UChicago, Stanford and Yale.

The SHS seniors, who are also best friends, said they were happy to receive the news in an email around Dec. 1.

The Match Scholarship is offered as part of a financial aid package provided by the college that covers the full cost of attendance, including tuition, room and board, books and supplies and travel expenses.

This year’s Match Scholarship recipient come from 48 states, including the District of Columbia, as well as the territories of Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and Puerto Rico.

These high school seniors have an average unweighted GPA of 3.93, and 94% are in the stop 10% of their graduating class. Of the students who reported standardized testing, 82% scored about 1260 on the SAT and 84% scored above 27 on the ACT. Financially, 95% come from a household with an annual income under $65,000, and 87% qualify for free or reduced-price school meals. The majority of these new QuestBridge scholars — 78% — are among the first generation in their families to attend a four-year college in the United States.

Land plans to attend Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and major in chemistry while Huang will pursue a degree in business at Washington University in St. Louis.

Both students noted the application process for the Match Scholarships began over the summer.

“It’s an extensive application process,” Huang said.

The students said they initially applied for the scholarships through QuestBridge. When they were chosen as finalists, they were asked to rank a certain list of colleges and then submit with supplemental essays.

Land said she used her experience working with the SHS’s Link Crew program, which focuses on service to the school and students through peer mentorship and instruction. Link Crew members help create an environment where students feel welcome and connected and is built on the idea that students can help students succeed.

Land said her essay focused on that experience but also about her choosing not only get to know her peers on that level but also getting to know who they are as a person.

Huang said her essay focused on how she runs a few businesses, one which is geared to posting social media content.

Since 2003, the QuestBridge National College Match has connected over 8,850 students with full scholarships at college partners, according to QuestBridge. These 2020 Match Scholarship recipients become the first QuestBridge scholars for the class of 2025. Based on previous years, it is estimated that over 2,000 finalists will be admitted to QuestBridge college partners later in the year through early and regular decision process.

“The achievements of our 2020 Match Scholarship recipients are particularly exceptional in the midst of a year marked by challenging circumstances,” said Ana McCullough, CEO and co-founder of QuestBridge. “The fact that our college partners awarded a record number of scholarships this year bolsters our hope for a brighter, more equitable future.”