PULLMAN – Washington State University has awarded 255 students with scholarships through the Regents Scholars Program. The students were nominated their junior year by 167 high schools across the state.
A complete list of this year’s Regents Scholars and their schools is available at www.regents-scholarship.wsu.edu.
The top 25 nominees were named Distinguished Regents Scholars, a designation that comes with a four-year scholarship worth over $54,000. Other Regents Scholars received two-year awards worth $6,000 or $8,000. Each of the Distinguished Regents Scholars’ high schools will receive a plaque recognizing the contribution the schools have made to their students’ success.
Every year in March, WSU President V. Lane Rawlins invites high schools and Native American tribes in the state of Washington to nominate two of their best high school juniors for the Regents Scholars Program. The total worth of the awards granted this year is more than $2.8 million. Since its inception four years ago, the program has awarded scholarships to more than 2,000 students.
The program is unique in two significant ways. First, every qualified nominee who completes the scholarship process receives a Regents Scholar award. Second, the scholarship awards hinge entirely on the participation of educators.
Students are nominated for the Regents Scholars Program by their high schools or by one of the nine participating Native American tribes-meaning that nearly every high school in the state of Washington has an opportunity to virtually guarantee that two of their top students will receive substantial scholarships for their hard work.
To qualify for nomination, students must be high school juniors who are Washington state residents or are selected by participating Native American tribes. They must have a grade point average of 3.80 or higher; and score at least 1200 on the SAT (critical reading and math), 26 on the ACT, or 180 on the PSAT. Nominees are judged on academic performance, leadership capability and community and extracurricular involvement.
“These are exceptional students, often the top of their class,” said Rawlins. “They combine their academic talents with tremendous contributions as leaders in their high schools and communities. They represent the future leadership of our state. By offering this opportunity for significant support toward their education at WSU, we signify their importance to our state’s future.”
