TYLER, Texas — 12 East Texas students were chosen to receive a full-ride scholarship to UT Tyler.
President of UT Tyler, Dr. Kirk Calhoun, hand-delivered the scholarships to the students during the University's "Annual Admissions Road Show."
“I get the fun piece," he said. "Which is coming out and recognizing these brilliant young people with the goal that we want the best and the brightest to stay in our community.”
Three students at Tyler Legacy High were the first to be surprised.
Christopher Whitmore is the president of Science National Honor Society, Secretary of National Honor Society and was named the district student of the month.
"It was an amazing feeling to see all my goals and ambitions come true,” he said.
Maria Kellermann-Jimenez arrived from Spain in 2014. She's currently ranked 5th out of 506 students in her class. She's also the president of the Spanish Club.
“I saw my parents and automatically I felt grateful. I’m honored, honestly,” she said.
Henry Jones has attended K–12 at Tyler ISD (Andy Woods, Moore, Tyler Legacy). He is a team leader for UIL Computer Science and enjoys making and producing music.
"This is what I’ve worked for my entire educational career,” he said.
The last stop of the day was Adriana Higuera at Tyler high. She’s the first recipient ever at her school. She’s also a part of the band, who came out to play for her as she received her scholarship.
“I feel like I made them proud," she said. "They're like my family away from my home because I spend every minute with them”
She made her dad proud too. She wasn’t expecting it, but he was right by her side.
“I can't believe he didn’t tell me. I don’t know when he got the phone call. I'm just so shocked he was here," she said. “The pandemic it cuts out everyone's income, so I knew I was gonna have a hard time with my family as well. So I'm really glad it makes it easier for my parents to pay for my university."
“This is maybe the first student from Tyler High and she certainly won't be the last," Dr. Calhoun said.
The admissions roadshow continues this week as UT Tyler surprises students all over East Texas. The 12 who were chosen will have their tuition, fees, books, room, and board completely paid for.