Two ISD Students Receive Prestigious Gates Millennium Scholarship

Two ISD seniors- William Chrisman’s Ronnie Cravens and Van Horn’s Daniel Serres- were named 2016 Gates Millennium Scholars, receiving a good-through-graduation scholarship to any accredited college or university they choose. More than 50,000 students nationwide apply each year- Cravens and Serres are two of just 1,000 recipients.

Cravens is a member of the National Honor Society, the Spanish Honor Society and the school’s ACE Club. He is a three-sport athlete, the Senior Class Vice President and Student Council Secretary. Cravens said he is leaning toward San Diego State University, but is considering the University of Colorado. He wants to double major in international business and Italian.

“All my hard work was worth it and paid off,” Cravens said. “I have a chance to pursue my dreams.”

Serres has been accepted to the University of San Diego and the University of San Francisco, but has not made a decision. He plans to major in political science, pre-law and possibly marketing- a field in which he already has lots of experience. During the Kansas City Royals 2015 World Series run, Serres’ business, DA Socks, received considerable media attention thanks to his celebrity spokesman, World Series Most Valuable Player and Royals Catcher Salvador Perez.

“I’ve always wanted to help other people in my career,” he said.  “This is going to allow me to achieve great things without having to face a financial barrier.”

Funded by a $1.6 billion grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Gates Millennium Scholars program allows high-performing, low-income students access to higher education by removing financial barriers.