Scholarship includes Amazon internship
Most students don’t get Amazon deliveries at school. But two seniors from Arlington ISD’s STEM Academy at Martin High School just got packages that will change their lives.
“I had no idea what was coming,” said Karmen Chandler.
What began as a typical meeting for members of the school’s Roboboat team turned into something much more significant – the unveiling of two Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship winners.
“I thought there was no way,” Chandler said. “The second they pulled out those Amazon boxes, I knew.”
In a competitive field of 4,000 applicants nationwide, Chandler and his classmate Emilio Reza were among the 400 students selected for the prestigious scholarship.
Offering up to $40,000 toward undergraduate degrees in engineering or computer science, along with a summer internship at Amazon, this opportunity opens doors for students to pursue their dreams at any college of their choice.
“It’ll help all my options be more affordable,” Chandler said. “I feel like now I have more of a choice in where I want to go.”
As busy members of Martin’s Roboboat and drone teams and national cyber scholars who won CyberQuest last year, they couldn’t have done it without the support of their STEM teacher James Hovey.
“Mr. Hovey has been my number one supporter,” Reza said. “He’s given me so many opportunities to learn from and pushed me to where I am today.”
But to Hovey, it’s their go-getter attitudes that set them apart.
“One thing they have in common is they take advantage of every opportunity to enter competitions to have fun while learning,” he said.
As the district’s fourth and fifth recipients – and the fourth year in a row for a Martin student – the reputation of Amazon scholarship winners in Arlington ISD stands strong.
“I am very proud,” Hovey said. “I had high hopes that they would be awarded this honor.”
But the journey is just beginning.
Chandler hopes to attend the University of Texas at Austin or the University of Oregon to study computational neuroscience, the field of study in which mathematical tools and theories are used to investigate brain function. With interest in coding, Reza plans to attend Rice University, Stanford University or Massachusetts Institute of Technology to study cybersecurity.
Until then, Chandler and Reza will be soaking up the rest of their senior year.
“This is an incredible opportunity and scholarship for these kids,” said Martin principal Marlene Roddy. “It’s a huge honor for our STEM Academy and the work our teachers do.”
Learn more about Amazon Future Engineers.