2024 JAX College Scholarship recipients announced

JAX awards three students with $10K scholarships, a total of $200K in scholarships granted since 2018. JAX's annual scholarship, now in its sixth year, recognizes high school students from underserved backgrounds pursuing careers in life sciences and health care.

The Jackson Laboratory is pleased to announce the recipients of its 2024 JAX College Scholarship Program: Nhi Nguyen of Litchfield, Maine; Margaret Lam of Branford, Conn.; and Nikil Krish of Sacramento, California.

The annual award provides $10,000 scholarships to high school students from underserved backgrounds in Maine, Connecticut and greater Sacramento, California who will pursue a college degree and aspire to a career in biomedicine.

"With these scholarships, the JAX Genomic Education team aims to encourage, train, and enthusiastically support bright students who aspire to enter STEM careers. It is a privilege to award the JAX College Scholarship to these future leaders-Nhi, Margaret, and Nikil. We eagerly anticipate supporting their academic and career growth throughout their higher education journeys," saidSarah Wojiski, director of Education at JAX. "Our goal is to provide continuous support to our scholarship recipients, assisting them with career planning, seeking internships and more. We stay connected with our scholars - and ensure they stay connected to each other, as well, fostering a network of resources they can draw on for years to come. This year, we were proud to see our 2023 Sacramento recipient, Ella Jean Raymundo, become a Summer Student in Bar Harbor. These multiple touchpoints and ongoing support make our scholarship program uniquely valuable."

In addition to the financial award, JAX facilitates internship programs for the recipients throughout their college career and sponsors annual campus visits.

2024 Maine JAX College Scholarship Awardee: Nhi Nguyen

Nhi will use her JAX College Scholarship for her undergraduate degree at Brown University, where she plans to get her degree in Health and Human Biology. She plans to attend medical school after college and eventually become a practitioner in family medicine. In her application, Nhi, who emigrated to the United States from Vietnam when she was eight-years-old, wrote that science - in particular biology - is her passion, and she is inspired to work in the medical field by a desire to better understand the human body, especially after watching her grandparents' struggles with diabetes and cancer. "Human biology ties me to the world as I get to learn how my own body functions relative to others," she said. Nhi attended Oak Hills High School, where she was a multi-year winner in the Academic Decathalon, a member of the Future Business Leaders of America, and a class officer, taking on roles of both Vice President and President during her high school career.

2024 Connecticut JAX College Scholarship Awardee: Margaret Lam

Margaret will use her JAX College Scholarship to study neuroscience and economics at Brown University, and hopes to eventually become a physician-scientist. Inspired by her father, who was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome when she was a freshman in high school, Margaret hopes to one day treat patients with blood-related disorders, and to specifically study how induced pluripotent stem cells might provide answers to conditions like these. She plans to place a firm emphasis on patient care in her medical practice, working to improve health in an equitable way, while also accommodating cultural differences. "The stories I've heard of my parents, who immigrated to America, showed me the indescribable bravery they had," she wrote in her scholarship application. "Because of this, I knew I wanted to advocate for underrepresented communities." Margaret attended Branford High School, where she was the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the Yale Book Award and high honor roll, and was a member of the Science Olympiad Team and Model Congress.

2024 California JAX College Scholarship Awardee: Nikil Krish

Nikil will use his JAX College Scholarship for to attend Drexel University as part of the B.S. to M.D. dual degree program, with an emphasis on research and medicine. He is particularly interested in a career reaching underserved communities. "I aim to creatively solve and treat complex healthcare problems," he wrote in his application. "I am committed to enhancing humanity's existential survivability, quality of life and health." Nikil will build on his already impressive feats in the field of robotics, including inventing the "COVID Sociometer" in high school, which helped his immunocompromised father and others stay safe by helping to facilitate a "social distance" bubble around the wearer. Nikil graduated from Jesuit High School, where he participated and won multiple awards in Model UN, participated in multiple internships, including at Tufts University's Mini- Medical School, and founded the Neuroscience/Concussion Club.

The Jackson Laboratory College Scholarship Program

To date, the JAX College Scholarship Programhas awarded a total of$200,000 in scholarships to students from underserved backgrounds in Maine, Connecticut and Sacramento County, California. This program supports students whose goals align with JAX's mission to discover precise genomic solutions for disease and with JAX Genomic Education's mission to create diverse and inclusive educational programs where students feel valued and empowered.

JAX Genomic Education's initiatives aim to ignite the passion of future scientists, advance careers and inform the public about the unfolding promise of genetics and genomics. In addition to the JAX College Scholarship Program, the Genomic Education team hosts and sponsors the Summer Student Program, Teaching the Genome Generation, the Maine State Science Fair, STEM Open Houses in Maineand Connecticut, and additional programs.

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