Today, 34 high school seniors from the greater Philadelphia region will be recognized at Firstrust Bank’s 47^th annual Samuel A. Green Scholarship program. The awards program, one of the region’s most renowned high school scholarship programs, granted $55,000 in college tuition to community-minded seniors who competed by penning a personal essay about leveraging education as a means to actively bolster their communities. The deserving scholarship recipients were celebrated today during a ceremony at The Franklin Institute.

“The purpose of this scholarship competition is to empower students to utilize their ingenuity and education to advance their communities and what better place to celebrate this mission than The Franklin Institute, a model for using creativity and intellect to give back to the world,” said Richard J. Green, C.E.O. and Chairman of Firstrust. “We are pleased to celebrate such a distinguished group of scholarship recipients, all of whom are poised to make positive changes in their own communities.” 

Samuel A. Green, founder of Firstrust Bank, believed in the importance of receiving a college education and using it to give back to the community. Eighty-one years later, the bank remains committed to these same values. This annual scholarship program upholds those founding principles by honoring young people in the region who reflect these principles. 

The 34 scholarship recipients were selected based on their written responses to a topic that is rooted in the mission of Firstrust, “How My College Education Will Help Me Cultivate Prosperity in My Community.”

Central Bucks High School South student, Taylor Lindeman, received the Grand Prize of $10,000; Souderton Area High School student, Erin Solomon, and Nazareth Academy High School student Emily Sokolowski, Second and Third Place winners each received $5,000 scholarships; and Gianna Perrone, Plymouth Whitemarsh student, won the $5,000 Teacher Award, specifically for a high school senior pursuing a career in education. 
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Thirty additional high school seniors from across the region were each awarded scholarships of $1,000:

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• Abena Ampofo, Neshaminy High School
• Hanna Barnett, Cherokee High School
• Vincent Catroppa, Saint Joseph Preparatory School
• Lanisha Cox, West Philadelphia High School
• Kyle Denton, Avon Grove High School
• Hayley Fried, Upper Dublin High School
• Tracy Glova, Little Flower Catholic High School
• Ariel Hannum, Central Bucks High School
• Dylan Higgins, The Episcopal Academy
• Jordan Johnson, Archbishop Wood High School
• Angela Justin, Southern Lehigh High School
• Asia Kaiser, J.R. Masterman School
• Kailey Karabin, Mount Saint Joseph Academy
• Thomas Koenig, Saint Joseph’s Preparatory School
• Patrick Lewis, Woodlynde High School 
• Amy Li, Upper Dublin High School
• Sandy Liang, J.R. Masterman School
• Colin McKay, George School
• Leonard Meirson, J.R. Masterman School
• Matthew Mohacey, Central Bucks South High School
• Kristen Moore, Mastery Lenfest
• Sarah Murgia, Lansdale Catholic
• Winifred Nagbe, Upper Darby High School
• Jake Rosen, Upper Dublin High School
• Camila Saunders, Germantown Friends School
• Joshua Staquet, Spring-Ford High School
• Alexandra Uzzo, Mount Saint Joseph Academy
• Christine Weider, Freedom High School
• Rachel Zeitzer, Lower Moreland High School
• Ani Zhang, J.R. Masterman School

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The Samuel A. Green Scholarship Program has helped Firstrust award nearly one million dollars to more than 1,000 area college-bound students and families in the past 47 years.

“Even after all this time, the passion these students have for their communities never ceases to amaze me,” said Mr. Green. “I am confident each one of them will accomplish great things and it is a privilege to be a part of their journey.”