About the Program
At First Tee, we believe that helping young people build strength of character is fundamental to success in life. Our active learning experiences are all about ensuring young people build inner strength, self-confidence and resilience, so when they face new challenges they are equipped to overcome them.
Going beyond our core programs, the enhanced First Tee College Scholarship Program is designed to provide further support, life skill development and mentorship of our alumni through their journey. Higher education continues to be a critical factor in unlocking opportunities for young people to thrive, and First Tee is committed to their success.
First Tee College Scholarship Program supports selected alumni throughout their college career. The need and merit-based program provides scholarships up to $5,000 per year, renewable for up to four years of college admission. The program also provides professional development workshops, access to internships and full-time employment placement post-graduation. One of the key factors of the program is pairing Scholars with a dedicated adult mentor who will help encourage and guide them throughout the four years.
The program is open to graduating high school seniors planning to attend college the following year. Applicants must be active members of First Tee chapters and will be considered based on financial need, academic performance, chapter involvement, volunteerism and other criteria.
Year after year, we continue to be impacted by our exceptional First Tee Scholars. Take a look at what’s been going on in our program.
Scholar Spotlights
“Being a part of this program has continued to guide me throughout my college journey through offering leadership programs, mentor guidance, and a great family of support to lean on!
Being a First Tee National Scholar is something I will forever be proud of.”
Maleyna Gregorio
First Tee — Coachella Valley
University of California, Riverside
2025 Scholar Class
First Tee — Greater Chicago
Wheaton College
Aerospace Engineering
First Tee — Benton Harbor
University of Michigan
Biochemistry
First Tee — Greater Houston
Montana State University
Kinesiology
First Tee — Coachella Valley
University of California
Business Marketing
First Tee — Greater Washington, DC
Princeton University
Economics
First Tee — Greater Baltimore
Duke University
Electrical Engineering
First Tee — Metropolitan New York
University of Pennsylvania
Economics
First Tee — Northern Michigan
Augustana College
Finance
First Tee — Silicon Valley
University of Southern California
Economics
First Tee — Greater Washington, DC
Rochester Institute of Technology
Engineering Technology
First Tee — Greater Washington, DC
University of Virginia
Computer Science
First Tee — Central Coast
University of California
Mathematics
First Tee — Greater Seattle
Georgetown University
Political Science
First Tee — Cleveland
Ohio State University
Aerospace Engineering
First Tee — Greater New Orleans
Tulane University
English
First Tee — Greater Sacramento
California State University
Kinesiology
First Tee — Howard County
Hamilton College
International Studies
First Tee — Greater Seattle
Chapman University
Biology
First Tee — Silicon Valley
University of California
Health Science Studies
First Tee — Salina
University of Kansas
Aerospace Engineering
First Tee — Central Florida
University of Florida
Journalism
First Tee — Greater Richmond
Virginia Tech
Computer Engineering
First Tee — Green Valley Ranch
University of San Diego
Civil Engineering
First Tee — Greater Sacramento
University of Nevada, Reno
Undecided
First Tee — Greater Pasadena
Scripps College
Political Science
First Tee — Manhattan
Kansas State University
Education
First Tee — Greater Sacramento
North Carolina State University
Civil Engineering
2024 Scholar Class
| Name | Chapter | Institution |
| Mahek Acharya | Greater Chicago | Indiana University |
| Maia Alinskas | Delaware | University of Delaware |
| Aditi Balakrishna | Tri-Valley | University of Illinois |
| Sarah Brannigan | Metropolitan New York | Georgetown University |
| Nicholas Crawford* | Roanoke Valley | Emory and Henry College |
| Erika Dierke | Minnesota | University of Mississippi |
| Argyle Downes* | West Virginia | Rutgers University |
| Tyler Joplin | Greater Dallas | Boston College |
| William Liu | Greater Seattle | Stanford University |
| Emmy Martinez | Greater Dallas | Bentley University |
| Henry Mentzel | Greater Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky | University of Kentucky |
| Gabriella Mercado | Orange County | University of San Diego |
| Faith Ndichu | Raritan Valley | Lehigh University |
| Joseph Neddo | North Florida | University of Central Florida |
| David Nguyen | Central Iowa | Grinnell College |
| Kylie Nguyen* | Greater Seattle | Chapman University |
| Selam Olson | Connecticut | Trinity College (CT) |
| Shae Patel | Metropolitan Oklahoma City | University of Oklahoma |
| Jaylyn Remolona | San Francisco | Seattle University |
| Isabella Rubio | Florida Gold Coast | University of Florida |
| Kailey Shapiro | Northern Nevada | Tulane University |
| Leah Torres* | Greater Houston | University of St. Thomas, Houston |
| Dimitri Vasilacopulos | Utah | Southern Utah University |
| Nathan Vertes | Florida Gold Coast | University of Florida |
2023 Scholar Class
| Name | Chapter | Institution |
| Christian Bonvisuto | Connecticut | University of Connecticut |
| Jerimiah Brown | Greater Philadelphia | Catholic University |
| Enrico Diaz | San Francisco | DePaul University |
| Daryn Dickens | Greater Washington, D.C. | Howard University |
| Ava Heaton | Triangle | High Point University |
| Ana Hunter | Memphis | University of Southern California |
| Mariane Johnson | Gulf Coast | Palm Beach Atlantic University |
| Kyzar Joshi | Massachusetts | Hamilton College |
| Isabelle Junio | Phoenix | Arizona State University |
| Sawyer Klein | Colorado Rocky Mountains | University of Arizona |
| Shamar Knox | Greater Sacramento | Sacramento State University |
| Falyn Lackey | Southeastern New Mexico | Western New Mexico State University |
| BJ Little | Metro Atlanta | Georgetown University |
| Stephen Ma | Central Ohio | Washington University, St. Louis |
| Natalie McKenzie | Greater Seattle | Gonzaga University |
| Maria Ramos | Greater Philadelphia | University of Pennsylvania |
| Saloni Somia | Minnesota | Brown University |
| Meredith Speer | Greater Austin | Sam Houston State University |
| Colin Vineburg | Greater Baltimore | Dickinson College |
| Kailey Watkins | Metro Atlanta | Florida A&M University |
| Madeleine Wocicki | Idaho | University of Nebraska at Kearney |
| Haley Wong | Greater Sacramento | University of California Los Angeles |
| Luke Wood | Greater Tyler | Texas A&M University |
| Marlo Zamora | Greater San Antonio | Trinity University |
2022 Scholar Class
| Name | Chapter | Institution |
| Breonna Boyd | Tennessee | University of Michigan |
| Nicholas Canales | Greater Houston | University of Nebraska |
| Antonio DelCastillo | Orange County | University of Alabama |
| Srishti Dhurandhar | Metropolitan New York | New York University |
| Vivian D’Orazi | Metropolitan New York | York College of Pennsylvania |
| Dylan Ebs | Greater Austin | George Washington University |
| Esther Etherington | Indiana | Franklin College |
| Maleyna Gregorio | Coachella Valley | University of California Riverside |
| Lea Han | Greater Sacramento | Harvard University |
| Raiyan Johnson | Savannah | Georgia Institute of Technology |
| Zara Karim | Greater Washington, D.C. | George Washington University |
| Nelia Leong | Upstate South Carolina | University of Florida |
| Myles Manor | Greater Washington, D.C. | North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University |
| Abigale Morris | Phoenix | Biola University |
| Hannah Newell | Greater Houston | LeTourneau University |
| Sabrina Poole | Greater Seattle | St. Martin’s University |
| Nancy Rivera | Silicon Valley | Middleburg College Vermont |
| Ahmad Raoul | Greater Chicago | Winston-Salem State University |
| Daniel Sears | Massachusetts | Franciscan University of Steubenville |
| Connor Shooks | Benton Harbor | Loyola University Chicago |
| Kenneth Treece | Pine Mountain | University of Alabama |
| Alexa Vela | Greater Houston | Rice University |
| Jaylon Wilson | Metro Atlanta | North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University |
| Iris Xue | Greater Washington, D.C. | Columbia University |
| Jacob Zakaria | Central Coast | University of California Berkeley |
2021 Scholar Class
| Name | Chapter | Institution |
| Claire Alford | Central Coast | Santa Clara University |
| Marion Caldwell | San Juan County | Dartmouth College |
| Natalie Cao | Greater Houston | University of Pennsylvania |
| Molly Castle | Tennessee | University of Tennessee |
| Malisone Chanthapanya | Fort Worth | Texas Wesleyan University |
| Quincy Crawford | Greater Washington, DC | University of Cincinnati |
| Rebecca Jones | Indiana | Rose Hulman Institute of Technology |
| Josh Lendach | Triangle | Western Carolina University |
| Meghna Mazumdar | Connecticut | Boston College |
| Benjamin Nganga | Tennessee | Indiana University |
| Kaleb Palm | Central Florida | Florida Atlantic University |
| Borina Sutikto | Silicon Valley | Santa Clara University |
2020 Scholar Class
| Name | Chapter | Institution |
| Luke Boldt | Coastal Carolinas | East Carolina University |
| Blake Brantley | Triad | Yale University |
| Jessica Jiao | Metropolitan New York | Georgetown University |
| Ricky Lam | Tri-Valley | Harvard University |
| Kelly Low | Fort Worth | University of Texas at Dallas |
| Nicole Monsalve | Miami | Duke University |
| Sara Rintoul | Central Florida | University of Florida |
| Remi Shendell | Metropolitan New York | Emory University |
| Denise Wei | San Francisco | University of California, Irvine |