Northeast Texas Community College student†Kayleah Cumpian of Mount Pleasant was recently awarded the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship. This prestigious award covers up to $40,000†annually at the university of the student?s choice for up to three†years. Only†90 students were selected from more than 2,000 applicants for this national honor.
Cumpian is the fifth NTCC student to receive this award since 2010. Previously, Stephen Milburn and Matthew Jordan received the scholarship in 2014, Stephani Calderon in 2013 and Clara Ramirez in 2010. Scholars are selected based on†outstanding†academic ability and achievements, persistence, leadership and financial need.
"Kayleah Cumpian has won more state, regional and national awards than any other scholar in NTCC?s history.†As all of these prizes came in the form of checks, she has also earned more money in recognized competitions than any other student in our history. She is almost impossible to beat," Dr. Andrew Yox, Honors Northeast Director, said.
Cumpian is a sophomore Presidential Scholar in Honors Northeast, which is one of the most recognized two-year college honors programs in the United States. During her time at NTCC, she has received numerous state and national awards through Honors Northeast and Phi Theta Kappa. As a freshman, she won a third-place Texas Caldwell Award, a Boe Award for the Great Plains Honors Council and†a†Texas STAR†Award†from†Phi Theta Kappa. Cumpian presented original research at the 2014 meeting of the National Collegiate Honors Council and participated in an undergraduate research program at Texas A&M University-Commerce last summer. She presented original research from her†internship†at the Southwest Regional American Chemical Society meeting in Fort Worth in 2014.
"Everything I've done here at NTCC helped make me a serious candidate for Jack Kent Cooke. I was able to get more one-on-one attention and have opportunities that I most likely would not have had at another school. NTCC was the only school†I†applied to after high school, because it just made sense for me. That decision has paid off," Cumpian said.
This year, Cumpian continued her streak of excellence by winning multiple honors and awards including: 2015 Student Representative for the Great Plains Honors Council, Coca-Cola Community College Academic Team Gold Scholar, national†Guistwhite Award winner through Phi Theta Kappa†as well as the Walter B. Cooper Scholarship recipient.† In addition,†she earned a top prize in a poster research contest at The Great Plains Honors Council meeting. Cumpian has secured a highly coveted internship at MD Anderson in Houston this summer. She is Vice-President†of Service and the second-in-command†of NTCC's Alpha Mu Chi Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa and presented workshops to packed crowds for Phi Theta Kappa at the district, regional, and international level.
"Kayleah's successes are an excellent example of the types of opportunities that NTCC students have that they might not get†elsewhere. It is virtually unheard of for undergraduate students to participate in original research, and our students are†doing research†as freshman and sophomores. Her success, and the success of others like her, speaks to the caliber of both our students and our faculty. We are so proud of Kayleah and know that she will represent us well as she continues her education," Dr. Brad Johnson, NTCC President, said.
Cumpian is the daughter†of†Lorny Cumpian†of Mount Pleasant. She is a 2013 graduate of Mount Pleasant High School. She plans to pursue a career conducting cancer research from a pharmaceutical perspective. She has already been accepted into†several schools of pharmacy and undergraduate programs including those of the University of Texas at Austin, Texas Tech and Texas A&M.
Cumpian pointed out a few special people she would like to extend her appreciation to for their mentorship at NTCC. These include Dr. Andrew Yox, Dr. Mary Hearron and the rest of the math/science faculty, Dr. Melissa Weinbrenner, fellow honors students and her Phi Theta Kappa family.
"There have been so many people who have helped make my time at NTCC special. I am so grateful for the opportunities that I have had and I know that the relationships I have made will continue into the future," Cumpian said. "I am the first person in my family to attend college, but seeing me succeed has helped inspire several of my cousins to pursue degrees. I also have an eight-year-old brother and it is very important for me to set a good example."
