Goldberg Scholars

KIPP SoCal Public Schools

Laisha Ajtun, an East Los Angeles native, attended KIPP Sol Academy. She plans to fuse her artistic and analytical nature to create aesthetically pleasing and eco-friendly infrastructures that mitigate the effects of pollution in marginalized communities. She also hopes to use her degree to contribute to humanitarian projects in developing countries where access to sustainable water and sanitation is scarce. As Laisha was born and raised in a community impacted by environmental racism, she intends to pursue a minor in public policy to advocate for increased Latino representation in decision-making processes that impact Latino communities. In her spare time, Laisha helps create and restore vandalized murals all over Los Angeles to contribute to the city’s beauty and culture.

KIPP Texas Public Schools – Austin

Mercedes Alvarez will graduate from KIPP Austin Collegiate. As a Mexican American, first-generation college student, she is committed to increasing equity for underserved communities, particularly across the healthcare industry. After graduation, she plans to study bioengineering and/or mechanical engineering, emphasizing research on low-income communities and preventative healthcare measures. Mercedes’s passions were developed through her family’s experience with healthcare disparities, and she remains committed to using the skills she has acquired in high-school robotics to explore the intersection of engineering and medicine.

KIPP NYC Public Schools

Godfrey Asare will graduate from KIPP NYC College Prep. He is passionately involved in anything that connects to community outreach. Godfrey works as an assistant in the English department and is president of a fraternity at his high school that promotes unity, brotherhood, service, and mentorship to younger middle-school students at KIPP. Godfrey celebrates the freedom he was afforded at KIPP NYC to choose his classes, as it has fostered his passion for computer science. His experience with coding includes Advanced Placement and dual-enrollment courses in computer science, and an opportunity to attend All Star Code. At the event, his group designed a demo website addressing businesses impacted by COVID-19. His experience in high school encouraged Godfrey to explore many ways he can use coding technology to address recurring issues that are often neglected.

KIPP DC Public Schools

Joel Bowman will graduate from KIPP DC Legacy College Preparatory. He plans to major in business and finance, hoping to get into investment banking and become a financial advisor. His family experiences growing up fueled his desire to create generational wealth and his passion for financial equity. Joel describes his life as a “phoenix rising from the ashes.” His fellow peers refer to him as “Uncle Joe” because of his “old soul” and encouragement of those around him. Joel serves as president of the Student Government Association, manager of his school’s store, and ambassador to middle-school students who tour his high school. In his spare time, he loves being with his family, and his favorite hobby is being a part of his community’s bowling league.

KIPP Massachusetts Public Schools

Alejandro Nina Duran was told by his Mami that he can be anything he wants to be. After immigrating from the Dominican Republic in 2012, he began his journey with KIPP Massachusetts, where he is a graduating senior at KIPP Academy Lynn Collegiate and continues to make his mother proud. He shoulders his Dominican pride, embracing his natural hair texture as he teaches his two younger sisters to embrace their curls. He has shown his affinity for service through his leadership as president of the National Honor Society, where he helped to bring back his school’s teacher-assistant program and established a K-8 tutoring program at his local KIPP elementary school. His optimistic personality helped forge multiyear connections, and he displayed academic excellence that he plans to take beyond his community. As he pursues economics and finance at Duke University, he hopes to teach marginalized households the financial literacy he never had.

KIPP St. Louis Public Schools

Lexie Fitzgerald will graduate from KIPP Saint Louis High School. She dreams of becoming a real-estate agent and business owner in multiple states. During high school, Lexie was inducted into the Honors Society and was both a basketball team captain and band drum major. She also started her clothing line. Lexie is passionate about lifting people and being a great leader and role model. She is determined to transfer her love of sports to others and remain positive. Lexie hopes to be able to continue her clothing brand and play basketball at the college of her choice.

KIPP Texas Public Schools – Houston

Nicole Isibor will graduate from KIPP Houston High School, where she participates in cheerleading, the African Student Association, and the Student Council. She was also inducted into the inaugural National Honor Society. She will attend the University of Southern California, where she matched through QuestBridge and plans to study health promotion and disease prevention. Nicole wants to become a pediatric oncologist and help children who suffer from blood-related diseases, to pay it forward after many dedicated doctors helped her. Nicole is an active volunteer, serving her local library, Cancer Kids First, and Care4Kiddos. She is passionate about helping and giving back to her community.

KIPP Texas Public Schools – Austin

Alejandra Larraga-Rodriguez will graduate from KIPP Austin Collegiate. She plans to major in mechanical engineering at Vanderbilt University. The satisfying sound of things falling into place, to function as intended, brings joy to Alejandra. When she heard the metallic clang of components uniting to form a robot, Alejandra knew her calling was to become a mechanical engineer. Her insatiable curiosity drives her to create innovations that work effectively and profoundly impact communities in need. She dreams of designing efficient, cost-effective machinery for aircraft carriers, sustainable energy production, and life-changing medical devices. Alejandra hopes to focus on biomechanics and robotic surgeries to save and heal the lives of hundreds of people whose needs are seldom met.

KIPP Public Schools Northern California

Teresa Ayala Leon will graduate from KIPP King Collegiate in California’s Bay Area. As a first-generation Latina, she values the privilege of education and has consistently sought opportunities to share it with others. She is passionate about tutoring, has taught English to students in Hong Kong, and studied Advanced Placement Biology. Teresa continuously resisted gender norms in her community and advocated for the recognition of the women in her family. She is passionate about cooking and developed MealsForTheMind.com, a food blog that focuses on mental wellness through nutrition. In her free time, she enjoys exploring new restaurants and walking with her Maltipoo. Teresa aims to study journalism and become a food writer.

KIPP Massachusetts Public Schools

Flory Mendez Merida is a first-generation Guatemalan who is passionate about engineering and the change she can accomplish with it. Attending KIPP Academy Lynn Collegiate High School in Massachusetts, she solidified her love for engineering and her community by founding engineering clubs both for her fellow KIPP high-schoolers and for girls at her KIPP elementary school. Leading these clubs, she created a welcoming community that advocates for more Latinas in engineering. She has competed in Samsung Solve for Tomorrow competitions and helped win more than $32,000 for KIPP’s STEM department. She finds leisure in running and traveling, and she has adopted the hobby of baking for her family.

KIPP SoCal Public Schools

George Perez attended KIPP Sol Academy in East Los Angeles. He plans to attend the University of Southern California and study the business of cinematic arts within the USC Marshall School of Business. George sought opportunities to combat the issues he saw throughout low-income communities in Los Angeles. “As a First Generation, Queer immigrant,” he wrote in his KIPP Goldberg application, “he continues to challenge traditional norms with a strong ambition to break stigmas across the cinematic universe and change perspectives of cultures around the world.” A UCLA Riordan Scholar and Puente Lideres Inc. STEM Entrepreneur, he is determined to continue his education in business to develop a network that provides access to opportunities for individuals with similar backgrounds, with the goal of creating a mentorship and scholarship foundation.

KIPP New Orleans Schools

Amari Ann Shepherd will graduate from Frederick A. Douglass High School in New Orleans. A published writer and active leader in her community, Amari serves as president of her student body and member of the mayor’s and superintendent’s youth advisory councils. She plans to continue her passion for policy in college and major in political science with a pre-law concentration. Amari’s goal is to become an attorney, a local legislator, and finally a judge. She is focused on helping marginalized and underrepresented groups of people.

KIPP Public Schools Northern California

Angela Sien will graduate from KIPP King Collegiate in California’s Bay Area and join the University of Pennsylvania’s class of 2028 as a first-generation college student majoring in public health on a pre-medical track. She leads the Asian Pacific Islander affinity club, encouraging Asian-identifying students to build cultural belonging through shared experiences. She also leads a volunteering club that helps middle-school students become involved in their communities. An activist outside the classroom, she creates media content that spotlights high achievers from Asian ethnicities and has interviewed more than 25 Asian American and Pacific Islander peers regarding mental health and racism. She also explored barriers to campus sexual-violence prevention programs, particularly for people of color, implementing changes directly to Stanford’s sexual-violence prevention curriculum. Angela desires to use the interdisciplinary background she will gain in college to continue advocating for marginalized groups in and out of healthcare as she aspires to become a pediatrician.

KIPP Texas Public Schools – Austin

Giselle Vazquez-Herrera is valedictorian of KIPP Austin Collegiate’s class of 2024. She is a confident and courageous first-generation student who will focus her studies on political science at Brown University. Giselle founded a successful debate team at her high school and represented one of the only Hispanic teams in many tournaments. A mentor and the go-to translator for schoolwide events, she is vice president of her school’s chapter of La Sociedad. Giselle has medaled in cross-country and track competitions. She aspires to become an immigration attorney to aid marginalized communities.

KIPP Colorado Public Schools

Mahnaz Zahedi is valedictorian of KIPP Northeast Denver Leadership Academy’s class of 2024. Mahnaz is focused on community development and participates in the National Honor Society, Student Board of Education, and Aid Earth Club. She plans to obtain a bachelor of science in international business to boost her understanding of the global marketplace’s complex interconnections and improve the global economy. She is passionate about hiking, photography, and drawing. Mahnaz has dedicated countless hours working with children as a summer and winter camp counselor and outdoor-survival assistant, and she believes these programs are developing future changemakers. She strives to positively impact her school and community and become a source of change for her generation.