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GCA’s Pajarillaga wins a QuestBridge scholarship
Elijah Joshua Pajarillaga of Grace Christian Academy has received a full four-year scholarship to Wesleyan University through the QuestBridge National College Match. (Contributed Photo)
Grace Christian Academy announced yesterday that Elijah Joshua Pajarillaga has received a full four-year scholarship to Wesleyan University through the QuestBridge National College Match.
QuestBridge National College Match is a national program that connects high-achieving high school seniors from low-income backgrounds with full four-year scholarships to the nation’s top colleges. Out of over 18,500 applicants, QuestBridge selected 6,885 finalists to be considered for the QuestBridge National College Match Scholarship. Pajarillaga was one of the 1,464 finalists who have been officially selected as Match Scholarship Recipients.
“The achievements of our 2020 Match Scholarship Recipients are particularly exceptional in the midst of a year marked by challenging circumstances.” said Ana McCullough, CEO and co-founder of QuestBridge
As noted in the official Questbridge press release, this year’s Match Scholarship Recipients come from 48 states, including the District of Columbia, as well as the territories of Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Puerto Rico.
These outstanding high school seniors have an average unweighted GPA of 3.93, and 94% are in the top 10% of their graduating class.
“As a school administrator, there are few times that we have the honor of working with students who excel and stand out above their peers. Joshua is one of those individuals,” said GCA principal Beth Nunez.
Pajarillaga is a high academic achiever who has represented Grace Christian Academy and the CNMI with honor in several national competitions in the United States, including 9th-11th grade for the National Speech and Debate. In addition, he represented the CNMI in Washington,
D.C. for the Middle School Academic Championship in which his team won second place nationally. He was also the school’s representative to the CNMI Youth Congress last school year and is the Student Council president this school year.
“My exhaustive efforts [haven’t been] for naught— that I and other hardworking students in the CNMI are capable of being recognized among our nation’s best,” he said when asked for comments.
“We are very proud of Joshua and excited for all that God has ahead for him,” said Nunez. (PR)
