BENTONVILLE -- Trey Tate III is well aware of the challenge ahead of him.
Tate, who graduated from Bentonville High School on Saturday, is headed to the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., for the next stage of his education.
At A Glance
Top Scholarship Winners
Here is the list of Bentonville High seniors honored at Academic Signing Day as the top 20 academic scholarship recipients of their class.
Name*College*Scholarship
James (Trey) Tate III*Naval Academy*$425,000
Amanda Dias-Jayasinghe*Harvard University*$234,400
Ashlynn Deaton*Texas Christian University*$154,040
Winona Gbedey*Texas Christian University*$154,040
John Michael Neubert*Texas Christian University*$154,040
Courtney Griggs*University of Texas-Dallas*$153,512
Saswat Das*University of Tulsa*$128,000
Michael Douglass*Case Western Reserve University*$120,000
Tejaswi Makkapati*University of Tulsa*$112,000
Michael Morse*University of South Carolina*$112,000
Jack Robertson*Creighton University*$108,000
Levi Lape*University of Alabama*$105,800
Elliott Miller*University of Alabama*$105,800
Erica Kugler*University of Alabama*$99,800
Rebecca Gary*University of Alabama*$95,800
Alicia Hoke*Transylvania University*$94,000
Scott Bratspies*Southern Methodist University*$90,000
Colin Doege*University of Arkansas*$90,000
Jacob McCullar*University of Arkansas*$90,000
Trenten Jarvis*William Jewell College*$86,000
Source: Bentonville High School
"My great-grandfather served in World War II," Tate said. "That started a lifelong interest in the military."
Tate's education at the academy is valued at $425,000. That made him the top scholarship winner of his class.
The top 20 academic scholarship earners, who collected a combined $2,712,232, were honored last week during the Bentonville Public Schools Foundation's annual Academic Signing Day event that's as much a celebration of teachers as it is of students.
Each student identifies a Bentonville School District teacher who has most inspired them or made the biggest difference in their lives. The students present their teachers with medallions and they get their picture taken together.
"It's the most touching program the foundation supports," said Brandie Perry, foundation president.
Students and parents then pose for pictures signing a document that is hung at the district Administration Building.
Tate chose English teacher Lora Pate as his best teacher, saying she had the greatest influence on his work ethic.
"She was one of the toughest teachers I ever had," he said.
About 870 students graduated Saturday, according to Chad Scott, principal. The class earned more than $7.4 million in scholarships. That included $7.1 million in college, university and military awards and $318,450 in local and community scholarships, according to Alice Haney, post-secondary adviser.
Last year's class of about 800 students earned $7.3 million in scholarships.
Amanda Dias-Jayasinghe, this year's valedictorian, was the school's second-biggest scholarship winner with a full award worth $234,400 to attend Harvard University. Dias-Jayasinghe also completed enough credits at NorthWest Arkansas Community College to receive two associate's degrees last week.
Three of the top five scholarship winners will attend Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas. One of them is Winona Gbedey, who aspires to be a doctor. She wants to work for Doctors Without Borders, an organization that delivers emergency medical aid where it's needed most throughout the world.
Gbedey identified Celine Simpson, her French teacher, as the one who helped her the most.
"(Simpson) really encouraged me to try new things and break out of my shell," Gbedey said.
Tejaswi Makkapati received $112,000 to attend the University of Tulsa, where she will pursue a chemistry degree. She awarded her medallion to math teacher Janie Jones, whom she had for two years.
"She is without a doubt one of my favorite teachers," Makkapati said.
Jones, who has taught for 33 years, called Makkapati "a great kid" who's always happy, kind and considerate.
"Academically, she's outstanding. And she volunteers a lot in the community," Jones said.
Bob McCaslin, Bentonville mayor, spoke at Academic Signing Day. He expressed amazement at the students' accomplishments.
"Every year I come (to Signing Day), I know when I come through those doors, the IQ in the room just came down," McCaslin said.
He said the students had grasped the concepts of responsibility and accountability.
"You have committed to learning and making yourself better," McCaslin said. "The probability of your succeeding is 100 percent."
NW News on 05/18/2014