Berkeley County School District is excited to recognize its three nominees for the U.S. Presidential Scholar Award.

BCSD has the opportunity to nominate three students to represent the district for the award every year. The U.S. Presidential Scholars Program was established by President Lyndon Johnson in 1964. Since that time, the program has honored more than 8,000 high school seniors on the basis of outstanding scholarly achievements.

Initially, nominees were recognized based on SAT or ACT scores, but as the program evolved, candidates have been recognized in other ways. Since 2013, Chief State School Officers have been invited to nominate candidates from their states for the Academic/General Component category, and in 2016, outstanding students who demonstrated excellence in Career and Technical Education (CTE) were included for recognition.

BCSD is proud to announce the three following nominees that will be recognized on the state level and will potentially move on to the national level.

Emily Renee Tinnea - Stratford High (CTE)

What makes Emily an outstanding CTE student? This is the response to that question taken from her application packet: Emily is an outstanding CTE student because of her commitment to HOSA. She has served on the HOSA leadership team for the past two years, currently serving as the president of her HOSA chapter, which has taught her the challenges of effectively managing a group of her peers. She has grown in the CTE program and feels that she has found her calling for her future career. She not only takes classes in the CTE program; she also tries to remain as active as possible in clubs that will help her be a better student. She has learned how to manage her time, study and organize her work, thanks to the CTE program. Progressing through the Health Science program added to the challenging additional academic courses she has taken at Stratford High. Striving for excellence, Emily said she will continue Health Science courses throughout her senior year. Taking part in the CTE program has given her a significant headstart on her medical field journey, adding to her confidence as she moves forward in her education.

Isabella Marie Corbit ("Izzy") – Philip Simmons High

What makes Izzy an outstanding scholar? This is the response to that question taken from her application packet: Izzy is an outstanding scholar because her leadership skills and drive for success are characteristics that have shaped her into the person she is today. Izzy said education has always been incredibly important to her. As a natural observer and creative problem solver, she has excelled as both a student and an individual. Throughout all years of schooling, she has taken academic achievement very seriously, as she hopes to become an engineer when she graduates from college, which is a rigorous career path. She believes that the reason she is an outstanding scholar is not because she is some "genius prodigy" or "incredibly gifted," but because she has such a hard work ethic. No matter what the subject is, she always finds motivation to complete any task to the best of her ability and research areas in which she is struggling to fully understand what it is she is learning. Izzy said there has never been a time when she has settled for simply not comprehending something, and she believes that this has helped her succeed in all aspects of her life. She has gained a lot of recognition for her academic achievements, including official awards from the College Board and from her community. She has also been heavily involved with school sports and clubs. She was a state All-Star volleyball player this year, served as the editor of Philip Simmons High's literary magazine, senior class vice president, National Honors Society treasurer and National Art Honors Society vice president.

Tyler Jack Williams - Timberland High

What makes Tyler an outstanding scholar? This is the response to that question taken from his application packet: Tyler is an outstanding scholar because he is a well-rounded student who has taken all of the most rigorous classes his school has to offer, all while helping his peers with their work. He also plays sports, which breaks up the stress of school. Tyler said he has maintained As throughout his high school career. His course load this year consists of many college classes, including Calculus and Trigonometry. He wants to pursue a degree in mathematics, including a doctorate. He has taken all the math classes he can at Timberland High as well as more online through Trident Technical College. If there were more to take, he would have taken them. His passion for math has pushed him to be better and his pride will not let him fall. He even helps his fellow peers with their work/homework, and he is also like a tutor to others. Many students have gotten better with their school work because of him.

Timberland High

BCSD celebrates its three presidential scholar award nominees