Four Mount Carmel School students were recently accepted to attend Junior State of America programs this summer, including two students who received full scholar- ships. This is the second year in a row that two Knights have received the full scholarships funded by the US Department of Interior.
Michelle Palacios, Jeff Melchor, and Jonelle Toskas were all accepted to attend, with Melchor and Toskas earning full scholarships to their respective programs. The three students, all juniors, applied earlier in the year with the assistance of JSA alumni and MCS JSA president, Nathaniel Snodgrass.
Snodgrass attended last year’s program at Stanford and was very eager to help this year’s batch of students. As he put it, “It’s a great program that really helped me learn more about politics and government.” He added, “It’s also a perfect way to prepare for college.”
The Junior State of America is a program that brings high school students to top universities in the U.S. – like Stanford, Princeton and Georgetown – to take college-level courses relating to politics, from AP Government to speech to macro-economics. Successful completion of courses typically translates to college credits for students. The program is also an opportunity for students to network with and learn from other like-minded students with interests in politics and government.
Toskas was accepted to at- tend the program at Princeton University and is excited about the opportunity. “I am overjoyed because Princeton is one of my dream schools. The fact that I get to go there feels really good.”
Melchor was accepted to attend the program at Stanford University. Melchor said, “I look forward to exploring opportunities, including meeting new people, learning new perspectives, and improving my public speaking skills.”
