Grade 12 students Sarah Millman and Sarah Colborne are two of about 70 students who will travel to Toronto Friday and Saturday as finalists for the Loran Scholarship. Of those students, 30 of them will be chosen to receive $80,000 for Canadian post-secondary education each over four years as well as receive a mentor and internship opportunities. All finalists will automatically receive $3,000.
“I’m hopeful and I feel like I’ve worked really hard, but there are so many deserving people,” said Truro’s Millman, who has been accepted to both the University of Ottawa and University of Toronto. She intends to study either ethics or human rights and conflict.
Successful recipients will be rewarded thanks to their academic achievement, extracurricular activity and leadership potential.
For Millman, she is chairwoman of the United Way youth board, has led a 1,000-participant protest to save school libraries from budget cuts and has coached younger students in debating and track and field, and more.
Heading into this weekend’s one-on-one and panel interviews, Millman is excited but nervous.
“I’m competing against extraordinary people so it will be a weird balance of making friends but then competing with them.”
Colborne, of Harmony, said receiving one of the scholarships “means I could go anywhere I want for university.”
She has been accepted to Dalhousie University and the University of New Brunswick. Although undecided which one she will choose, Colborne is interested in a career in computer science and business.
As for why Colborne was chosen as a potential candidate, she believes it’s her versatility that makes her stand out. She is in the robotics club, edits the yearbook, manages the school café, is a track and field athlete, and is a community and church volunteer.
Another Chignecto-Central Regional School Board student, Sam Donaldson, of Hants East Rural High School, has made the finalist list as well.
