WHITEHOUSE, Texas — A recent Whitehouse High School graduate is being honored as a recipient of an incredibly prestigious scholarship.
According to Whitehouse ISD, top 10 grad Mereck Fandohan was recently notified that he is a recipient of the Jackie Robinson Foundation (JRF) Scholarship.
Fandohan was one of only 60 winners who were chosen from 4,000 applicants.
"My initial reaction was disbelief; when I saw the email when the results came out, my heart rate, I could hear my heart beating louder," Fandohan said. "Over this year, I'd applied to a lot of different scholarships and I got rejected from basically all of them except this one and I'm grateful for it."
The application process for this scholarship was challenging. Fandohan would have to write several different essays to prove he was a qualified recipient and embrace the values baseball legend Jackie Robinson stood for.
"The first essay that I remember writing was about Jackie Robinson, who was out as a person outside of baseball," Fandohan said. "One of my favorite parts in that essay that I wrote, besides being the first Black person to play professional baseball and being a civil rights activist, the most important thing he did was give hope to millions of Black kids that what they wanted could be theirs."
Those essays would land Fandohan in a select group of 60 students to receive up to $35,000 for their college education. Fandahan plans to attend the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and major in computer science.
"It will help me a lot with dealing with the cost of college because where I'm going to school is very expensive, especially being an out-of-state student," Fandohan said.
According to the JRF, scholarship recipients are required to perform community service throughout college, "as much to enrich their lives as to impact those whom they serve."
The JRF Scholarship Core Values include:
- Discipline - Meet responsibilities consistently and commit to the diligence needed to achieve success.
- Integrity - Always be guided by facts. Acknowledge the truth even when it compromises one’s own interests.
- Humility - Recognize that we are all created equal. Be quick to compliment, slow to blame, and modest in the wake of accomplishment.
- Compassion - Advance human dignity for all. Practice empathy and generosity toward others.
- Courage - Strive to abide by the core values, however difficult or unpopular.
Despite the challenges Fandohan encountered, he credits his parents and teachers for this prestigious honor.
"My parents are my number one biggest supporters from day one and have been there for me every step of the way," Fandohan said. I really appreciate every single one of my teachers for taking the time to write letters and support my journey."
While Fandohan continues his academic journey in North Carolina, he hopes his story will inspire others to never give up.
"This might sound really cliché, but anything is possible if you put your mind to it," Fandohan said. "I want to inspire other Black people who want to excel academically and help them see that you can do it too."