Alumni Scholarship Winners
2019
Meena Boppana
Meena is a Harvard graduate who grew up in New York City. After participating in the MATHCOUNTS National Competition with the New York State Team, Meena made a goal to increase female participation in MATHCOUNTS. As a high school student, she started her own MATHCOUNTS team at Girls Prep in Lower Manhattan. Reflecting on this experience, Meena said, "I discovered a deep passion for teaching math, as well as for leveling the playing field in education by race, gender and income. The experience showed me that if I saw an injustice, I could take direct steps to be the change I wanted to see." After working as a softward engineer for a few years, Meena decided to return to Harvard to earn a Master's in education and become a math teacher in the Boston Public School System.
Karen Ge (Runner-up)
This year’s applications were so impressive that for the first time, the MATHCOUNTS Foundation chose a scholarship runner-up. Karen Ge is a high school senior from Naperville, Ill. At 18, Karen already has become a MATHCOUNTS coach, founded her own non-profit tutoring organization and even published her own book about her MATHCOUNTS experiences. ”Mathematics is woefully misconstrued in the public eye as a cold, unimaginative discipline when it is in reality a vibrant, ever-shifting patron deity of all social and intellectual progress. These lessons about mathematics, the communities it fosters, and the character and morals that it inspires are what MATHCOUNTS truly means to me,” says Karen.
Finalists
Annette Belleman, DD; Christina Bingham, ND; Jude Flynn, FL; Alexander Kalbach, PA; Arjun Krishna, AR; Isabella Mahal, CO; Erin Melton, WI; Prastik Mohanraj, CT; Anusha Murali, NH; Tyler Phung, NV; Annie Shen, WA; Sonal Sinha, MN; Collin Van Cuyk, WI; William Wang, KS; Lucy Ward, UT; Catherine Ye, NY; Saba Zerefa, AZ; Michelle Zhu, IN
2018
Colin Hill
A participant in both the National Math Club and MATHCOUNTS Competition Series, Colin Hill of Massachusetts currently attends Yale University, where he volunteers as part of the university’s longstanding MATHCOUNTS Outreach club. Since his freshman year, Colin has been a MATHCOUNTS coach and the club’s Competition Coordinator, responsible for organizing MATHCOUNTS Outreach's annual competition for more than 200 middle school students in New Haven, CT.
In addition to his volunteer work, Colin is a research assistant at the Zigler Center for Child Development and Social Policy, and a teaching assistant at Yale's Department of Statistics and Data Science. In 2016, he was one of only 20 students selected for Yale’s Education Studies Scholars Program, which prepares students to become global leaders in education. He was also a Finalist for the 2017 MATHCOUNTS Alumni Scholarship.
A statistics and data science major with a minor in education studies, Colin has described his time helping students of all backgrounds as a defining part of his time at Yale. “As a former MATHCOUNTS student and a current MATHCOUNTS teacher, there is nothing more rewarding than seeing hundreds of middle schoolers who are genuinely excited about math.”
Finalists
Sritanuj Alapati, AL; Alexa Beathard, OK; Brittany Blakeley, ID; Andrew Cui, NY; Adam Henderson, AZ; Gabriel Kammer, NY; Ashley Knebel, CA; Jim Kong, MD; Janpal LaChapelle, AK; Edward Lee, TX; Junhee Lee, IA; Jae Hyun Lim, NE; Tanisha Martheswaran, UT; Sarah Martin, MD; Dianna Meyers, OR; George Moe, IL; Anna Nguyen, PA; Adriene Pavek, ID; Shyam Sai, IL; Margaret Scholle, IL; Laura Seaberg, MD; Emily Spencer, KS; Daniel Stein, MN; Zachary Sussman, FL; Alexander Tan, MO; Madeline Wang, CA; Ingrid Zhang, NE
2017
Kaylee de Soto
After her own time as a MATHCOUNTS chapter and state competitor, Kaylee de Soto went on to lead her school's Mu Alpha Theta club, and win numerous awards for her success in academic (particularly math) competitions. Among these awards was a Mathematics Silver Medal in the Hispanic Youth Awards and recognition for scoring 10th in the nation in the National Conservation Foundation's Envirothon.
After Kaylee learned that her former middle school's MATHCOUNTS program had ended because her own former MATHCOUNTS coach and mentor had transferred to another school, she set out to restart the program. She ended up coaching for two different schools, which she described as "life-changing," and led one of her teams to place in the top 10. During her time coaching, Kaylee realized that she "had helped form a true team, whose friendship extended far beyond math problems. All these students, who were so withdrawn initially, who had become accustomed to hiding in the back of their classes, who had let their accomplishments define their worth, had found confidence in each other. Just being able to help create something that strong was nothing short of humbling."
Kaylee also led a student-run tutoring company, Tutoring for Tomorrow, which raised $10,000 annually to support public school extracurricular activities in her community, including the two MATHCOUNTS groups Kaylee coached. She also participated in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's MITES program, which she credits for helping her discover she wanted to major in mathematics and physics.
A Florida native, Kaylee spoke at the 2017 Raytheon MATHCOUNTS National Competition in Orlando, where she advised current MATHCOUNTS students to follow their passions and keep an open mind about new fields of study to pursue. She attends MIT.
Finalists
Camille Baker, IL; Sarah Betts, PA; Grace Billig, NE; Pooja Chainani, VI; Emily Coffield, KY; Nisha Devasia, NH; Samantha Dickmann, IL; Milena Djordjevic-Kisacanin, TX; Sabrina Epstein, TX; Jackson Hall, TX; Colin Hill, MA; Benjamin Kelm, MD | John Lazur, MN; Vincent Li, NY; Jessie Linder, NM; Nikhil Marda, MN; Simon Marland, NC; Dhruv Methi, MN; Huiwen Miao, NY; Jacob Nelson, MN; Stephen New, CO; Victoria Pan, PA; Ashwin Sah, OR; Sujay Shankar, TX; Varun Srikanth, OR; Claire Staresinic, PA; Siang Tseng, MD; Erica Wang, PA; Andrew Ying, CO
2016
Jacob Wachspress
After Jacob Wachspress' success as a MATHCOUNTS chapter and state competitor in Pennsylvania, he continued with competitive math, leading his high school’s ARML team to three consecutive top 10 finishes. In addition, he was a four-time individual champion at a math competition program in Bucks County. Beyond math, Jacob volunteered at Boys and Girls Club of Trenton as an English and math tutor for students in grades 1-3. He also was Student Council President at his school; through this position he helped plan and organize various school events and won an award for his service.
After graduating from high school and being accepted to Princeton University, Jacob decided he wanted to do more to give back before starting college, so he joined Princeton’s Bridge Year Program, which gives students the opportunity to defer their entrance at Princeton to participate in an immersive, one-year service project abroad. Through the Bridge Year Program, Jacob worked as a math teacher for elementary, middle and high school students in Bolivia. He described the experience as transformative for him, writing, “What I can say for sure...is that I am not done sharing that rush of bliss that MATHCOUNTS brought to me. The ‘how’ may not yet be clear...but I know that the arc of my life will inevitably put me in positions to spread the incredible joy math can bring.”
Jacob was also a 2015 MATHCOUNTS Alumni Scholarship Finalist. He attends Princeton University, where he majors in mathematics.
Finalists
Jeremy Du, MD; Ina Flood, AK; Adam Graunke, AZ; Meghal Gupta, CA; Trisha Hariani, GA; Nithin Kannan, AZ; Emma Kerwin, MA; Sarah Koubek, NE; Michael Kural, CT; Hans Li, TX; Celine Liang, CA; Nancy Lu, PA; Tristan Pollner, CA; Shravan Ravishankar, KY; Laura Seaberg, MD; Kelsey Sucher, KY; Richmund Tan, CA; Megan Zhao, OH; Geoffrey Zheng, FL
2015
Shyam Narayanan
Shyam Narayanan has already demonstrated how exceptionally talented he is in mathematics and science, but what truly sets him apart is his dedication to make a difference in the world through his work. Shyam's success in mathematics began early: he was a three-time MATHCOUNTS National Competitor, a Countdown Round Runner-Up, a Countdown Round Semifinalist, a Written Competition Champion and a Written Competition Runner-Up.
After middle school, Shyam decided to apply himself to helping others fall in love with math. Having won a considerable amount of prize money in the national "Who Wants to Be a Mathematician?" contest, he decided in high school that he would use the money to found a Mu Alpha Theta club. He has led the club throughout high school and has worked to expand its reach by creating new avenues of engagement for students in his area. For the past three years Shyam has been a volunteer tutor for elementary, middle and high school students and is also a volunteer assistant MATHCOUNTS coach.
Beyond Mu Alpha Theta, Shyam is involved in numerous extracurricular activities. He is team captain of the Academic Decathlon Team, a pianist and composer in an Indian and Western Classical Fusion Music Troupe, and a four-time captain of his high school's Science Bowl Team. In 2014 he began biophysics research on bacterial competition through the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology Research Science Institute. Shyam was named a Semifinalist in the Siemens Competition in Math, Science & Technology in recognition of his excellence in research.
Shyam is passionate about science and mathematics and aspires to have a career that allows him to have an impact on the scientific world. He is a student at Harvard.
Finalists
Kushal Agarwal, OR; Allison Bukys, MA; Wesley Cao, NJ; Matthew DeCross, NY; Qian (Cathy) Deng, NY; Judy Hou, VA; Jason Lee, NY; Yelena Mandelshtam, CA; Vivek Miglani, FL; Kay Nakazawa, NC; LiQian (Sisi) Peng, CO; Siddharth Prasad, CA; Angeline Rao, TX; Shreya Shankar, TX; David Stoner, SC; Jacob Wachspress, PA; Jesse Zhang, CO
2014
Adrienne Carmack
Adrienne Carmack's connection to MATHCOUNTS extends beyond her middle school years. After competing as a member of the Maine Team at the 2009 Raytheon MATHCOUNTS National Competition, she went on to be a MATHCOUNTS coach during all four years of high school. Adrienne has been highly successful academically; she was Salutatorian of her high school, a National Merit Scholar and National AP Scholar, a Presidential Scholar Semifinalist and recipient of the Maine Principal's Association Principal's Award.
Adrienne is also an incredibly well-rounded student and has pursued leadership roles in diverse extracurricular activities. She was an active member of her high school's Student Senate and was elected Student Senate President her senior year; she was a member and later captain of her school's math team; she participated in varsity swimming, track and cross country throughout high school.
After graduating high school Adrienne joined AmeriCorps to work with Girl Scouts of Maine, where she created financial literacy planning programming and led troops. She credits her time as a MATHCOUNTS coach and Girl Scout troop leader for helping her realize her passion for teaching and mentoring. Adrienne studied pyschology and education at Colby College and plans to become a clinical psychologist and high school teacher.
Finalists
Nida Ansari, SC; Calvin Beidemon, PA; Alexander Clifton, NJ; Madhurima Das, MT; Adithya Ganesh, TX; William Gooding, VA; Alicia Lai, PA; Jeremy Lee, MA; Sophia Paulison, TX; Kyle Robertson, MO; Bruce Taylor, NC; Kathryn Taylor, FL; Laura Vonessen, MT; William Wu, TX
Scholarship Information
To learn more about the MATHCOUNTS Alumni Scholarship and download the applicaton, please visit the scholarship website.
