Greenacres announces $111,500 in educational scholarships; 2025 recipients named

Deputy Mayor Diaz announced that, on May 19, the City Council ratified the Education Advisory Board Scholarship Committee’s recommendation awarding $111,500 in educational scholarships for 2025.

Diaz said a resident donated $1,500 specifically to underwrite a STEM scholarship this year. The Education Advisory Committee reported a record number of applications — about 33 — and acknowledged staff and volunteers who coordinated transcripts and letters of recommendation.

The council and the committee recognized multiple recipients across local high schools and colleges. Named awards and recipients announced at the meeting included the Denise Padgett Memorial Scholarship for athletic excellence (recipient: Jaima Gail, John I. Leonard High School), the Norman Rose Memorial Scholarship for community service (recipient: Brianda Olguin Salas, John I. Leonard High School), a STEM award (recipient: Caroline Lucky, North Broward Preparatory School) and other named and general scholarships to students attending John I. Leonard High School, Suncoast High School, Palm Beach Atlantic, Florida Atlantic University, the University of Florida and Palm Beach State College.

Several student recipients offered brief remarks. Perla Tavira (University of Florida) read a prepared statement thanking donors and committee members and said the scholarship will support her business studies and interest in law: “This support helps me do just that, build a future, an education, and hopefully a career that gives back just as much as I've been given today,” she said.

Deputy Mayor Diaz and committee members recognized the volunteer reviewers and student liaisons and asked recipients and family members to stand for acknowledgement. The ratification itself occurred May 19; the council’s meeting presentation on the award recipients was a recognition and ceremony.