Kennedy update.

Kennedy Xiong won the ACE in 2015 and headed off to the University of Minnesota. Here's an update from him. Nothing like travel to open your mind to all that's possible. Be well, Kennedy. Do great things. 

"I am currently extending my undergraduate time an additional year so that I could study abroad; I am studying in Tokyo, Japan. So far it has been a blast and I am learning so many new things! The differences in culture and way of life has been truly eye opening. I have definitely become more humble and appreciative of the things that I have. I am truly glad that I made the decision to study abroad. I am also currently working as a part-time teacher here in Japan. I go to multiple places throughout Tokyo to work and in each place, I work with another teacher (Japanese teacher) to teach kids how to speak English! The kids vary from ages 3-10. It is so fun to be able to work with and teach them!"

Say hello to the 2019 Ace winner: Taylor Love.

Taylor is a recent graduate of Harding High School in St. Paul and headed to college. In her words:  "I would like to thank you so much just for providing this opportunity for students like me, who are dedicated to improving access to and standards for education. Also thank you so much for choosing me as a recipient, as incorporating this scholarship into my cost of attendance calculations has significantly decreased the amount of financial stress on me and my family. It means a lot to be able to fully focus on education, given the incredible importance of it. I’m currently preparing for a trip to a University in Taipei, so I have been working a lot and recently filling out many to-do lists." Good luck, Taylor. Do great things. I know you will.

The latest from the first.

Chidyaonga Shalita was the first Ace Scholar winner back in 2013. He always will be special to me, not only because he was the first Ace, but because he graduated from my high school, Highland Park in St. Paul. He's such a great person and his future is so bright. Is there a doctor in the house? Why yes there is.

Here's an update:

"In late November, I received my first acceptance letter from the Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University in Rhode Island and soon after that additional acceptance began rolling in. By March of 2019 I was accepted into (Brown, University of Chicago, University of Minnesota, University of Wisconsin Madison, University of Cincinnati, Northwestern University, Morehouse Medical College, and Duke University). In the end, after financial aid negotiations I ended up deciding to attend Duke University School of Medicine with a full-tuition scholarship."