Comcast Awards $110,000 in Scholarships to 101 Maryland High School Seniors

BALTIMORE, March 26, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The Comcast Foundation, founded in 1999 to provide charitable support to its local communities and to empower and enrich lives, has awarded scholarships to 101 Maryland high school seniors through its annual Leaders and Achievers^® Scholarship Program. The program, one of the Comcast Foundation's signature community investment initiatives, recognizes students' leadership skills, academic achievement and commitment to community service.

Comcast, joined by Governor Martin O'Malley, Dr. Darla Strouse, Executive Director of the Maryland State Department of Education's Partnerships and Recognition Programs, and other local elected officials recognized the students at a special event held yesterday at the Historic Inns of Annapolis. 100 of the 2014 Maryland Leaders and Achievers recipients received $1,000 scholarships. Gloria Barrientos Sanchez, a senior at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Md., was awarded a $10,000 Comcast Founders Scholarship – instituted in honor of Ralph J. Roberts, Founder and Chairman Emeritus of Comcast Corporation – for a total of $110,000 awarded this year to Maryland high school students. After a prize drawing, two students were also given iPads to use at college.

"Congratulations to this year's scholarship winners for exceptional achievements in both their classrooms and communities," said Governor O'Malley. "There is no greater ladder of opportunity than a quality education, that's why we've made the better choice to invest in our number-one-in-the-nation schools and hold down the cost of college for Maryland families to the lowest levels nationally. I'd like to thank Comcast for its ongoing support of Maryland students."

"These outstanding scholars are a tribute to the tireless efforts of teachers, administrators and parents who have worked so hard to help them succeed," said Dr. Lillian M. Lowery, State Superintendent of Schools, Maryland State Department of Education. "We are fortunate in Maryland to also have forward-thinking corporate citizens, like Comcast, committed to helping our students thrive."

"In today's high-tech businesses, advanced education and training are more important than ever," added Donna Rattley Washington, Comcast's regional vice president of government and community affairs. "Comcast is dedicated to helping students succeed so they can go on to deliver the next great innovation. We applaud this year's outstanding scholarship winners and are excited to see them take the next step in their academic journeys."

The Comcast Leaders and Achievers^® Scholarship Program provides $1,000 scholarships to students who strive to achieve their potential, who are catalysts for positive change in their communities, who are involved in their schools and who serve as models for their fellow students. The philosophy behind the program is to give young people every opportunity to prepare for the future and to engage them in their communities. The program also demonstrates the importance of civic involvement, and the value placed on civic involvement by the business community.

To date, Comcast has awarded more than $21.6 million to nearly 21,000 Leaders and Achievers Scholarship winners.

2014 Comcast Leaders and Achievers® Scholarship Winners from Maryland
Scholarship Recipients (by County where the high school is located):

Anne Arundel County
Rucha Bhide of Arundel High School in Gambrills
Kerly Bonilla of North County High School in Glen Burnie
Cortney Mathis of Severn High School in Severna Park
Nisha Seebachan of Annapolis High School

Baltimore City
Joshua Acevedo of Benjamin Franklin High School at Masonville Cove
Kwame Alston of Baltimore School for the Arts
Jasmine Brown of Saint Frances Academy
Aislinn Bunisky of Roland Park Country School
Jamila Duke-Smith of Western High School
Jonah Edwards of Patterson High School
Bereket Getachew of National Academy Foundation High School
Z'undra Gilbert of Paul Laurence Dunbar High School
Miguel Green of Frederick Douglass High School
Claudaya Hood-bey of The Catholic High School of Baltimore
Ty'Neila Johnson of Coppin Academy High School
Casey Lee of Gilman School
Asia McCallum of Forest Park Senior High School
Kyrell McDowell of Augusta Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts High School
Makayla Munz of Cristo Rey Jesuit High School
Jamia Pinkney of Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High School
Anika Rutah of Bryn Mawr School
Keyonna Stewart of Academy for College and Career Exploration
Angel Williams of Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy
Sydney Yelity-Paul of Institute of Notre Dame

Baltimore County
Christopher Barranco of McDonogh School in Owings Mills
Carly Compton of Overlea High School
Aaron Dodson of Western School of Technology in Catonsville
Kayla Edelmann of Dundalk High School
Charles Evans of Randallstown High School
Samad Fakhar of Dulaney High School in Timonium
Imoleayo Fanilola of Milford Mill Academy in Windsor Mill
Tymothy Hanks of New Town High School in Owings Mills
Danielle Karpa of Pikesville High School
Cori Kosko of Loch Raven High School
Calvin Li of Owings Mills High School
Nicholas Logue of Eastern Technical High School in Essex
Nicholas Luckert of Sollers Point Technical High School in Baltimore
Sarah Mills of Jemicy School in Owings Mills
Mercedes Myrick of Patapsco High School in Dundalk
Shaquan Parrish of Strawbridge School in Windsor Mill
Marian Simms of George Washington Carver Center for Arts & Technology in Towson
Dai'ja Stevens of Kenwood High School in Essex
Tiffany Truong of Perry Hall High School
Brenna Washington of Parkville High School
Isabella Willeboordse of Catonsville High School

Carroll County
Hannah Gore of Winters Mill High School in Westminster

Cecil County
Kurt Marking of Elkton High School

Charles County
Katherine Cheney of La Plata High School
Kaitlyn Crook of Thomas Stone High School in Waldorf
Kamiya Harris of Maurice J. McDonough High School in Pomfret
Emily Latimer of Southern Maryland Christian Academy in White Plains
Tabish Nawaz of Westlake High School in Waldorf
Mary Valdez of North Point High School for Science, Technology & Industry in Waldorf

Dorchester County
De'Lecia Ellis of Cambridge-South Dorchester High School in Cambridge

Frederick County
Alondra Herrera of Governor Thomas Johnson High School in Frederick
Connor Kennedy of Frederick High School
Mason McFee of Tuscarora High School in Ballenger Creek

Harford County
Nigel Hammett of Edgewood High School

Howard County
Kelley Bennett of Long Reach High School in Columbia
Kristi Kan of Centennial High School in Ellicott City
Kelsey Lamothe of Oakland Mills High School in Columbia
Kristina McClain of Howard High School in Ellicott City
Chineme Obiefune of Mt. Hebron High School in Ellicott City
Mekia Rodney of Northwestern High School in Hyattsville
Ricardo Rosario of Reservoir High School in Fulton
Christine Shen of Marriotts Ridge High School in Marriottsville

Montgomery County
Brenda  Ajavon of Seneca Valley High School in Germantown
Abigail Joy Cajayon of Rockville High School
Adonis Corvoisier of Thomas Edison High School of Technology in Silver Spring
Leena Daniel of Takoma Academy in Takoma Park
Whitney Geohagan of The Academy of the Holy Cross in Kensington
Aaryn Godby of John F. Kennedy High School in Silver Spring
Charles Halverson of Winston Churchill High School in Potomac
Harry Laird of Landon School in Bethesda
Jana Lu of Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville
Shimona Malik of Clarksburg High School
Krishna Mudwari of Watkins Mill High School in Gaithersburg
Lisa Mutooni of Paint Branch High School in Burtonsville
Bala Natarajan of Springbrook High School in Silver Spring
Penelope Placide of Don Bosco Cristo Rey High School in Takoma Park
Renzo Reyes of Quince Orchard High School in Gaithersburg
Kierra Simpkins of Col. Zadok Magruder High School in Rockville
Margaret Simpson of James Hubert Blake High School in Silver Spring
Gislene Tasayco of Gaithersburg High School
Daniela Velasquez of Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring
Doopashika Welikala of Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School in Bethesda
Bradley Wolanin of Northwest High School in Germantown

Prince George's County
Nikeisa Aracena Felix of High Point High School in Beltsville
Joy Barnes of Oxon Hill High School
Gloria Barrientos Sanchez of Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt
Ebony Brown of Suitland High School in Forestville
Jamie Cumberbatch of Surrattsville High School in Clinton
Florence Gbenro of Bowie High School
Taylor Griffin of Fairmont Heights High School in Capitol Heights
Ashley  Jones-Quaidoo of Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr. High School in Upper Marlboro
Aysia Morton of New Hope Academy in Landover Hills
Carl Nebafu of Lanham Christian School in Lanham
Brina Olunkwa of Riverdale Baptist School in Upper Marlboro

Wicomico County
Alec Bell of Salisbury Christian School in Salisbury
Emily Creasy of James M. Bennett Senior High School in Salisbury
Jenna Wright of Parkside Senior High School in Salisbury

Connect with the scholarship winners at www.facebook.com/ComcastLeadersandAchievers. Explore and "like" Comcast in the community at www.facebook.com/WePowerDreams.

The Comcast Leaders and Achievers^® Scholarship Program is one of the many ways that Comcast gives back to the communities we serve. Click here to learn more.

About the Comcast Foundation
The Comcast Foundation was founded by Comcast Corporation in June 1999 to provide charitable support to qualified nonprofit organizations. The Foundation primarily invests in programs intended to have a positive, sustainable impact on their communities. The Foundation has three community investment priorities – expanding digital literacy, promoting community service and building tomorrow's leaders. Since its inception, the Comcast Foundation has donated nearly $140 million to organizations in the communities nationwide that Comcast serves. More information about the Foundation and its programs is available at www.comcast.com/community.

SOURCE Comcast Cable