I am letting you know that I am graduating from Mercer County Community College. I am thanking you personally because I know 101 has given me an opportunity to keep learning and continue on my education. I have learned a lot from great people like you and this has encouraged me to work harder. Thank you for your willingness to help students.

I’m a major in criminal justice. 101 to me means having a dream come true. It’s the support I needed in order to know how college life would be. It has opened doors for me to be able to take classes I could not do on my own. The 101 scholarship has helped me in many ways. I am able to obtain help financially and have someone help guide me through the transition into college.

The new mentors help make sure us students stay on track. I am very thankful of being able to have this opportunity. I know many other students will have the privilege of being able to have this scholarship as well. Thank you 101!

This past Saturday night, I attended a B1G TEN showdown in Columbus, Ohio. A nationally televised event between Penn State University and reigning national champions, THE Ohio State University. I looked to the south end zone and saw eleven thousand students yelling in unison to the north end zone students to remind the visitors from the Keystone State where they were. O-H-I-O each side of the stadium shares the responsibility of yelling. It then hit me. What the hell am I doing at The Ohio State University? What am I doing out of Mercer County? I’d like to believe that just my ambition, drive and hustle alone is the reason I am here. That may be part of such, but not entirely. School does cost money. A lot of money. None of this could/would be possible without the generous contribution made by the 101 Foundation. Studying at one of the nations’ top-50 institutions has been one of the most humbling and enlightening experiences I have been and probably will be apart of in my life; and without 101, none of this, would be possible. Thank you.

As a major player in helping Princeton students obtain funding to further their education you must know what an amazing impact you have on adolescents’ lives. In the past six years, your scholarship fund has helped finance the college education of both children in our family, and we are extremely grateful for your contributions.

Our family immigrated to the United States from Bulgaria in 2001, and both my sister and I attended Princeton High School, graduating in 2004 and 2006 respectively. My sister attended American University in Washington D.C., obtaining a double degree in International Affairs and Business and going on to work for Deloitte where she is now a Senior Analyst. I attended Barnard College at Columbia University in New York City, graduating with a degree in Environmental Policy and Biology. I have just been accepted into a number of medical schools including Mt Sinai School of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Weill Cornell School of Medicine, and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and will be starting at one of those schools this coming August.

I hope that you will continue to support the future educational goals of students graduating from the Princeton Regional schools. We thank you for your invaluable contribution to our education as well as the education of other students in the community.

Following graduation from PHS in 2002, Sara attended Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, where she graduated with distinction in 2006. Recently, Sara earned her Master of Music degree in Cello Performance at Ithaca College, where she held the teaching assistantship in cello. She will continue her studies in the fall at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she will be working toward her Master’s degree in Cello and Suzuki Pedagogy. Sara credits 101: for giving her the ability to pursue her undergraduate training at Indiana.

A 2005 Rutgers’ graduate with highest honors, Brian thanks 101: for giving him the opportunity to pursue his life’s goals. Throughout college and still to this day, his Eagle Scout project from his teenage years has continued to help the local community, providing a collection drive with tens of thousands of clothes and hygiene items donated annually to the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen. While in college, Brian founded the Screenwriters Community of Rutgers University and was a member of several honor societies including Cap & Skull — the highest accolade given to students.

Brian actively pursues screenwriting and producing humanitarian films, and has completed a script with best-selling author Loung Ung. Brian serves as President of his own web design businesses and is a founding member of the Long Beach Island Business Alliance, where he continues to volunteer his time. Brian is also helping to form a U.S.-based center for the Bonobo Conservation Initiative (www.bonobo.org), a 10,000 square-mile nature preserve in the Congo.

Graduating from PHS in 1999, Tyson subsequently attended and graduated from Northeastern University. His 101: scholarship not only provided major relief in paying tuition, but it also enabled him to participate in Northeastern’s distinctive International Business program, which included studying and living abroad in Madrid for a full year. Today, Tyson is an Associate at Provident Healthcare Partners, a middle-market investment banking firm specializing in merger and acquisition advisory to privately-held healthcare services companies.

With scholarship support from 101:, Katya attended Ithaca College for two years as an Occupational Therapy major. Following, she transferred to Rutgers University and switched majors to English and Music with a minor in Russian Language and Literature. Currently, Katya is enrolled in a doctorate program in Musicology at Princeton University and is looking forward to teaching music history as a college professor. She is very grateful to 101: for encouraging and supporting her in her varied academic pursuits.