By: Dr. Andrew Yox, Honors Director
Presidential Scholar, Daniel Landaverde, was recently awarded the bellwether scholarship for community college endeavors, the Jack Kent Cooke. This highly competitive and sought-after award provides up to $40,000 a year for students to complete their bachelor’s degree.
Landaverde was one of only two students in Texas to win this prestigious accolade. Nearly 1,500 students from 311 community colleges applied for the 2020 Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship. The Foundation evaluated each submission based on students’ academic ability and achievement, financial need, persistence, leadership, and service to others.
In addition to financial support, new Cooke Transfer Scholars will receive comprehensive educational advising from the Foundation to guide them through the process of transitioning to a four-year college and preparing for their careers. Scholars will additionally receive opportunities for internships, study abroad, and graduate school funding, as well as connection to a thriving network of over 2,700 fellow Cooke Scholars and alumni.
Four NTCC students and a college alumna qualified as semi-finalists for the award last February, 1 percent of the nation’s total. They were Presidential Scholars Courtney Baldwin, Landaverde, and Verania Leyva, as well as former Presidential Scholars, Jazmin Garcia, and Honors/Phi Theta Kappa Coordinator, Andrea Reyes.
Surprised by the announcement in a special Zoom video meeting with NTCC faculty and administrators on 22 April, Landaverde noted: “My journey here at NTCC has been an amazing experience. I was provided with an excellent staff and professors who helped me along my way and made this dream possible. I have been given a remarkable opportunity to develop myself, and it's through the constant help of my peers and family that I was able to reach this milestone.”
In the Zoom meeting with Landaverde, Vice President Kevin Rose commented: “Speaking on behalf of the college, Daniel, we could not be more excited. It is with great emotion that we say, ‘congratulations’!”
Some of Landaverde’s professors participated in the Zoom call. Professor Jim Ward noted: “you represent yourself, and the college very well, Daniel!” Dr. Melissa Fulgham added with spirit, “well deserved, well deserved!” Dr. Karyn Skaar held up a sign reading, “Congratulations.” Associate Vice President Anna Ingram, Dr. Mary Hearron, Dr. Paula Wilhite, Brenda Godoy, and Dr. Andrew Yox also congratulated the winner.
Landaverde was not the highest of ranked entering honors students at NTCC in the fall of 2018. In fact, he was waitlisted for a time. There has been some speculation as to when he began to exhibit the competitive flair that brought him this far. Some have noted that he was involved in the tragic bus-and-car accident in the spring of 2018 in Mount Pleasant High School as a member of the track team. When questioned, Landaverde noted, “Although that frightening encounter did affect me, I believe that my real turning point . . . came with entering the NTCC honors program. I remember speaking to my Cousin Brenda [Godoy] the summer before my first semester. She was the one that encouraged me to be in honors! At the time she too had recently won the JKC scholarship and I was thrilled to see her achieve such an extraordinary goal.”
Landaverde is the tenth honors student at NTCC to have received this prestigious award since 2010. The other nine were Clara Ramirez 2010, Stephani Calderon 2013, Matthew Jordan 2014 Stephen Milburn 2014, Kayleah Cumpian 2015, Angelica Fuentes 2016, Jessica Velazquez 2016, Alicia Cantrell 2018, and Brenda Godoy 2018.
Last spring Landaverde became the 7th winner of the Elizabeth Chitsey Award for the honors student at NTCC who most exceeded expectations. He participated in two NTCC films, in poetry contests, and honors trips funded by Drs. Jim and Paula Archer, and others. He went on to win Phi Theta Kappa’s Leaders of Promise Award in the fall of 2019, and present at the meeting of the National Collegiate Honors Council at New Orleans in November of 2019. Finally, Daniel was named to the All-Texas Academic Team, sponsored by the Texas Association of Community Colleges and Phi Theta Kappa, earlier this month.
The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation is dedicated to advancing the education of exceptionally promising students who have financial need. Since 2000, the Foundation has awarded over $200 million in scholarships to over 2,700 students from 8th grade through graduate school, along with comprehensive educational advising and other support services. The Foundation has also provided $110 million in grants to organizations that serve such students.
A retrospective of Daniel Landaverde’s accomplishments at NTCC is now available on the landing page of Honors Northeast at <www.ntcc.edu/honors>.
