College of the Sequoias sophomore Isis Frausto-Vicencio received the news last week that she is a recipient of the Jack Kent Cooke scholarship.
The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation awards these transfer scholarships to a small group of the top community college students across the nation who are seeking to complete their bachelor’s degrees. This year, the foundation is only awarding 85 scholarships from among more than 3,000 applicants. Recipients receive $30,000 a year for three years to cover educational expenses.
Frausto-Vicencio is a chemistry major with a 3.96 grade-point average. Among her many previous accomplishments, she was part of the NASA National Community College Aerospace Scholar’s Program at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, where she earned two summer internships. She is part of COS’ MESA program (Math, Engineering and Science Achievement) and has worked as a peer mentor for MESA and the PASEO (Promoting Achievement and Scholarship with Enrichment Opportunities) grant program.
Frausto-Vicencio is a graduate of Strathmore High School, the first person in her family to complete a high school diploma and the first to attend college. She has already been accepted for admission to UC Irvine, UC Santa Cruz and UC Santa Barbara. She is awaiting word from other four-year colleges and has yet to decide which university she will attend. She plans to major in chemistry for her undergraduate degree with a minor in earth science.
This is the fourth time in seven years that a COS student has won this prestigious and competitive scholarship.