Comal ISD students receive $564,572 in scholarships from community partners

NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas - Comal ISD's graduating class of 2022 received almost $565,000 in scholarships from community partners.

477 scholarships totaling $564,572 were awarded to seniors across Comal ISD's five high school campuses, surpassing the district's local scholarship goals for the year.

"We surpassed our local scholarship goals this year because of the wonderful community support we receive from our community scholarship donors," says Sarah Permenter, executive director of community education and programs for Comal ISD. "It is a pleasure to work alongside our donors who support our students and families every year."

The scholarships range in amounts from $250 to $25,000, with some focused on a specific area of study or with specific qualifiers.

The Seth Strong Foundation Scholarship awarded four scholarships of $1,500 each to students directly affected by cancer. This year’s recipients include Alexander Franz, Cameron Marburger, Joshua Wesloh and Zoe Weems, all from Smithson Valley High School.

To qualify for the scholarship, each student also had to have a 3.0 GPA and have been accepted to an accredited educational institution.

The Seth Strong Scholarship was awarded this year to four students from Smithson Valley High School pictured here with members of the Seth Strong Foundation board of directors. (Comal ISD)

Two Comal ISD students were honored this year with the Jan Heckendorn Memorial Scholarship, which has been earmarked for graduates of the district for the past 21 years. Comal ISD says Heckendorn was the founding member of what today is the Comal Education Foundation and a champion for students of the district.

The scholarship is awarded annually at the Jan Heckendorn Academic Recognition Banquet by her family including her husband John Heckendorn and their three children. This year’s recipients of the $2,500 scholarship are Lily Wilson from Canyon Lake High School and Preston Frazier from Davenport High School.

Pictured from left is Preston Frazier, recent graduate of Davenport High School, John Heckendorn, and Lily Wilson, recent graduate of Canyon Lake High School. (Comal ISD)

The district also held a breakfast on June 2 for all its local scholarship donors to say thank you and also learn how the district could better serve their needs as well as the students’ needs. Each donor was also given a Comal ISD "Valued Community Partner" yard sign to display in a window or yard.

Anyone interested in providing a local scholarship to Comal ISD students can contact Hilary Griffin.