Shore Scholars program signs on 16 new students

On Saturday, March 23, students from Starmount High School Forbush High School officially became Shore Scholars. The students, joined by their families, celebrated this accomplishment at Signing Day, held at the Willingham Theater at the Yadkin Cultural Arts Center.

The Shore Scholars program was established as a collaborative college and career preparation effort between The Shallow Ford Foundation and Yadkin County Schools in 2019. The program is made possible by the Shore Scholars Fund which was created by the Wayne A. Shore Endowment Fund of the Foundation. It supports students as they prepare for their chosen careers. Created for 11th and 12th-grade students, the program provides a peer group and a personal mentor during high school and two years beyond high school graduation through the transition to college or occupational training.

The new scholars from Forbush High School are Emily Beavers, Anali Benitez, Valeria Hernandez, Bailey Poindexter, Kaitlyn Roberts, and Keira Roberts. The Shore Scholars Mentor at Forbush High School is Natalie Vestal. The new scholars From Starmount High School are Meira Diaz, Cole Freed, Yaret Fuentes, Sarah Godfrey, McKayla Johnson, Shaelynn Reynolds, Katherine Reynolds, Jazmin Rodriguez, Olivia Stevens, and Ella Teague. The Shore Scholars Mentors at Starmount are Samuel Stone and Tasha Williams.

At Signing Day, each student and their family are invited onto the stage to sign a document committing to the list of expectations for Shore Scholars, which includes participation and GPA requirements. During the ceremony comments were given by Dr. Wayne Duggins, Interim Superintendent from Yadkin County Schools, and Wayne A. Shore’s daughters, Karen Hopper and Debrah Blase. Tim Bell, Immediate Past Chair of the Shallow Ford Foundation Board, served as MC for the event.

Representing the Shore Family, Karen Hopper and Debrah Blase offered heartfelt remarks, encouraging the students to take advantage of this program and sharing that their father believed in them and wanted to help them achieve their goals, even though he would never meet them, reminding them that they are the future of Yadkin County.

In closing, Bell offered the following: “Paul Brandt, a Canadian Country Music Artist, shared the following, that I believe that speaks volumes concerning your future. He said, ‘Never tell me the sky is the limit, when there are footprints on the moon.’”

To learn more about the Shore Scholars program, contact the Shallow Ford Foundation’s program officer Greg Keener at greg@shallowfordfoundation.org or visit https://www.shallowfordfoundation.org/initiatives/shore-scholars