To: Honorable Mayor and Members of Town Council
Through: David L. Corliss, Town Manager
From: Becca Schorr, Youth Commission Coordinator
Title
2025 Rising Star Scholarship Recipients
Body
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Executive Summary
On February 4, Council approved the Town of Castle Rock Rising Star Scholarship, which honors local high school seniors who have made significant positive contributions in the community. This program aims to foster civic engagement, celebrate local youth leadership and strengthen ties between the Town and its residents.
Four $1,000 scholarships will be awarded, using $2,000 from the Youth Commission’s budget and $2,000 from a resident’s donation. Scholarships are nonrenewable and directly distributed to the recipient’s higher education institution of choice.
Applications were accepted February 10 through March 14. Thirty-three applications were received.
Twelve Douglas County high schools were shared the information, and these are the number of applications from each high school:
• 16 Castle View High School
• 9 Douglas County High School
• 4 Colorado Early Colleges
• 3 Renaissance Secondary School
• 1 Ponderosa High School
Additional data from the applications:
• 31 applicants live in Castle Rock
• 32 applicants attend a Castle Rock high school
• 23 female applicants and 10 male applicants
The application process had four parts: 1) fill out an application form online at CRgov.com/YouthCommission; 2) submit a personal statement, sharing future aspirations and the impacts of contributions to the community to date; 3) submit a letter of support from a non-family member that speaks to the contributions; and 4) submit a media release form.
A panel of judges representing the Youth Commission reviewed applications, using a rubric to ensure fair and consistent evaluation. The panel consisted of youth from the Teen Advisory Group, Fire Explorers, Teen Court and Youth Police Academy, along with the staff and Council liaisons to the Youth Commission. In future years, Youth Commission members will serve as the youth evaluators.
Staff Recommendation
Staff and representatives of the Youth Commission recommend the following four students to be the recipients of the 2025 Rising Star Scholarship:
o Maya Ayres
o MariaJose Miranda
o Ren Rosenberg
o Kaelani Salinas
Staff will present a Star award and a framed letter from Mayor. Families and friends of the recipients have been invited to join this celebration.
Attachments
Attachment A: Presentation