MISD FFA Students Earn Nearly $57K at Showcase

MISD's FFA team prepared for the competition since January.

A group of 20 Mansfield ISD students who take great pride in their livestock can now say they have some of the best longhorns in the area, and they have the scholarship money to prove it.

The Autobahn Youth Scholarship Tour is an annual event in Fort Worth in which children and teens showcase their longhorn cattle. Organizers give out more than $400,000 in scholarship money to winners.

The five-day competition is much more than making sure the bovines have shiny coats. Contestants can also compete in various categories including public speaking, judging, agricultural mechanics, art and photography.

“I want my students to be really well-rounded individuals, so I tell them that they have to compete in certain categories,” said Kristi Chambliss, agricultural science teacher at Ben Barber Innovation Academy and sponsor for MISD’s FFA club. “If you want to be a pro in this industry, you have to be able to speak and write properly.”

Students from all over the Metroplex
showed off their cattle.

Diversifying the students’ talents paid off. The team raked in a club record of $56,998 in scholarships. In addition, three of the four all-around winners came from Mansfield ISD.

“My favorite part was seeing how happy the kids were when they heard their names being called for the awards,” Chambliss explained. “Our group also won the Herdsman Award for keeping our area the cleanest and working hard behind the scenes. It’s a big deal because showing is only a small part of what we do.”

This is the fourth year for MISD to compete in the Autobahn Youth Scholarship Tour. The students come for the competition, but leave with memories and lasting relationships.

“This is a major networking opportunity as well,” Chambliss continued. “They have common interests with other students and industry professionals. This can open the door to countless possibilities.”

View results of the 2017 Autobahn Youth Scholarship Tour here.

Rewarding the Determination to Succeed

Having a high grade point average (GPA) is great, but proving that you have the drive to roll with life’s punches on your journey to college is also important. And for three Mansfield ISD seniors, that trait is being rewarded.

The Dell Scholars Program annually awards $20,000, a laptop, textbook credits and ongoing support to students who demonstrate that they have a different type of GPA—grit, potential and ambition.

Medina (left) and Ali (right) said they value service
and want to make a difference in people's lives.

Timberview High School’s Maria Medina and Hana Ali, along with Summit High School’s Samira Bideh, were three of the 400 finalists nationwide.

Medina said she has come a long way from being the little girl who moved to the U.S. from Mexico and didn’t learn English until the second grade. Despite the naysayers and doubters she encountered, she was determined to make something of herself.

“I started getting really good at English by fourth grade,” Medina said. “The next year, I was taking Pre-AP classes. I was nervous at first, but my teachers kept encouraging me to try it.”

The senior is now graduating from high school with enough credits to enter Texas A&M University as a sophomore this fall in hopes of becoming an immigration lawyer and, eventually, the president of Mexico.

Her classmate Ali also knows a thing or two about not letting life’s experiences deter the future. The fellow Dell Scholar lost her father when she was in the eighth grade. Instead of making excuses for herself, she pushed herself even harder.

“It was a hard time for my family,” Ali explained. “But I’ve always valued education, and I knew it’s what my dad would have wanted. Doing good in school would make my parents proud, and that’s what I wanted to continue to do.”

And there’s certainly a lot to be proud of. Ali will be graduating as valedictorian of her class. She will also be attending the University of Texas at Arlington with a full ride and some leftover money for medical school.

Bideh said she's ready to take on college
and further her education in graduate school.

Over at Summit High School, Bideh spent her high school years striving to succeed by juggling school, a job and her extracurricular activities—all while still keeping up with her grades. She said her determination comes from her parents who came to America from Somali speaking little to no English when she was an infant.

“They didn’t know the system or how anything worked since it was a new country,” she recalled. “I just kept putting education first. But even if you don’t have the best grades, showcase the different things you’re good at to prove to colleges that you have what it takes.”

Bideh, who is one of six siblings, said that she plans to attend the University of Arlington. She wants to major in biology to become a physician assistant.

Although these ladies may have had different life paths and obstacles, they kept their positive attitude through it all. Now, with the welcomed surprise of being a 2017 Dell Scholar, they will be able to use their positivity to help others through their respective careers.

MISD Senior Gets Full Ride to College Through Grades and Grit

Sutton applied to become a Dell Scholar through her AVID class.

Katlyn Sutton knew she wanted to go to college; she just didn’t know how she’d be able to pay for it. The Timberview High School senior has four sisters, and her family was struggling to make ends meet.

To make financial matters worse, Sutton started suffering from escalated symptoms of Chiari malformation, a defect in the area of the back of the head where the brain and spine meet. It was causing her to experience blackouts, heart palpitations, numbness, and sleep paralysis. She needed brain surgery to help alleviate those problems.

“I felt really awful about it because I knew we couldn’t afford the surgery, but the surgery was something I needed to function properly,” said Sutton. “We already couldn’t afford groceries and things like that, so it worsened the financial burden.”

Sutton didn’t let her situation determine her future. She kept working hard in her classes, maintained a 3.81 GPA, and scored high on the SAT and ACT college entrance exams.

As a requirement for her AVID class at Timberview High, Sutton applied to become a Dell Scholar. Dell Scholars are students who have overcome significant obstacles to pursue their educations. Designees receive $20,000 in scholarship money, a laptop computer, textbook credits, and ongoing emotional support.

When the 17-year-old found out that she had been chosen, she couldn’t believe it.

“I was like ‘oh my goodness! $20,000 is so much,’” Sutton recalled. “I can now have a better life than the one I was given. My future’s going to be better.”

Sutton applied for the University of Texas at Arlington and was able to get enough money for her college tuition through grants and other scholarships. The money from the Dell Scholars Program will allow her to live on campus and save up for a possible master’s degree.

The senior wants to encourage other students in her situation to not give up and continue to apply themselves.

“It’s possible,” said Sutton. “I didn’t think I would. Sometimes you’ll feel intimidated, but it’s truly worth it in the end.”

MISD Seniors Prove Hard Work Literally Pays Off

L-R: Grant Wilkie, Kendall Curtis, and Ifeoluwa Obayan

For three Mansfield ISD seniors, hard work in their junior year paid off—literally.

Grant Wilkie from Summit High School, Kendall Curtis from Mansfield High School, and Ifeoluwa Obayan from Timberview High School all received very prestigious scholarships from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC).

Wilkie and Curtis received the National Merit Scholarship. Obayan was awarded the National Achievement Scholarship, which is given to high-achieving African-American students. Both of the scholarships are awarded based on a student’s high Preliminary SAT (PSAT) scores.

The winners of the scholarships receive $2,500, and universities often discount their tuition to finalists. For Wilkie, the news couldn’t have come at a better time.

“This is definitely the most important thing that’s happened to me in my life,” said Wilkie, who will be headed to Baylor University in the fall with his tuition fully paid. “I’m finally able to give back to my parents by saving them money. It’s a huge blessing.”

Out of 1.5 million National Merit entrants nationwide, only 7,600 are named as scholarship winners. Curtis, also headed to Baylor, explains what she did to help her odds.

“AP classes helped,” said the future law student. “I would suggest reading a lot of high-level literature and taking the harder math classes.”

Obayan can boast that she’s one of 800 winners out of 160,000 total applicants to receive the National Achievement Scholarship. She said looking back, she’s glad she put in the countless hours to review for the PSAT.

“I really worked hard,” said Obayan. “The District offered a PSAT prep program in the summer in my junior year, and I remember spending every Monday in that class for two to three hours. It really paid off.”

Obayan, valedictorian of her class, will be going to Harvard University to major in biomedical engineering.

For more information about the National Merit Scholarship Corporation and their awards, visit the NMSC website.

Two MISD Seniors Receive Big Scholarships

As the end of the school year approaches, seniors have two things on their minds—graduation and scholarships.

Watch the stories of two Mansfield ISD students—Brady Moore from Legacy High school and Lizzy Hennessey from Timberview High School—to hear in their own words how they won their generous scholarships in a very competitive field.

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Grit, Potential, and Ambition: the GPA of Dell Scholars

Timberview seniors Peyton Sennet and Sabrina Gonzales

Sabrina Gonzales and Peyton Sennet had way more to worry about than their grades in school.

The Timberview High School seniors were dealing with a lot of difficulties in their personal lives, but they never let that stop their vision of going to college.

Gonzales just suffered the loss of her 15-year-old brother in December 2014 from a stroke; and months before that, her parents filed for divorce. While she was going through that grief, she knew she had to keep her education as a priority.

“I had to grow up and become mature at an earlier age,” said Gonzales. “I taught myself how to study and to be more responsible.”

Sennet also had some hardships to overcome. She said while she was dealing with family issues, she followed the wrong path. The 18-year was even put in a mental health facility because of her behavior. It was the birth of her little brother that made her realize that she had to turn her life around.

“He looked up to me,” said Sennet. “I needed to start being a better example because he was going to follow in my footsteps.”

The two students had their mind set on higher education, but there was one road block in the way—the money to pay for it.

As a requirement for their AVID class, which focuses on college and career readiness, Gonzales and Sennet applied to become Dell Scholars. The Dell Scholars Program places greater emphasis on a student’s determination to succeed than just academic record and test scores. The winners receive $20,000, a laptop, textbook credits, a mentor, and other support services.

Gonzales and Sennet applied for the scholarship in January. Three months later, they received the news they had been hoping for.

“I couldn’t believe it. I was crying and speechless,” said Gonzales.

“I was just worrying about finances for college the night before, so when I heard I got the scholarship, I was screaming,” said Sennet.

The seniors are two out of 300 students in the nation who received the Dell scholarship, and this is only the beginning for the big plans they have for their careers.

Both have a heart for helping others. Gonzales plans to attend Abilene Christian University and become a nurse. Sennet wants to attend the University of North Texas and become a psychologist for the often-forgotten people in jail.