Keri Sohlman Memorial Scholarship

$1,500
1st winner$1,000
2nd winner$500
In Review
Application Deadline
Mar 1, 2024
Winners Announced
Apr 1, 2024
Education Level
High School
Recent Bold.org scholarship winners
Eligibility Requirements
Education Level:
High school senior
State:
New Jersey
Field of Study:
Mental health or education
Education Level:
State:
Field of Study:
High school senior
New Jersey
Mental health or education

Keri Sohlman was a graduate from New Jersey who was passionate about the fields of education and mental health.

The mental health and education professions are critical to the well-being and functioning of society. Mental health professionals and educators shape the lives of all clients and students they encounter. In order to create a more educated and healthy world, the bright minds of tomorrow must be supported throughout their education.

This scholarship aims to honor the memory of Keri Sohlman by supporting students in New Jersey who are passionate about mental health and/or education.

Any high school senior in New Jersey who is pursuing a career in mental health or education may apply for this scholarship. 

To apply, tell us about your inspiration to enter the mental health or education profession and how your career will help others.

Selection Criteria:
Ambition, Need, Boldest Bold.org Profile
Published October 2, 2023
$1,500
1st winner$1,000
2nd winner$500
In Review
Application Deadline
Mar 1, 2024
Winners Announced
Apr 1, 2024
Education Level
High School
Recent Bold.org scholarship winners
Essay Topic

Tell us about what inspires you to want to get involved in the mental health or education professions. How do you envision yourself contributing to the education and wellness of youth and adolescents in the future? In your answer, be sure to include your intended institute of higher education and major.

400–600 words

Winning Application

Madelynn Faber
Saddle Brook High SchoolSaddle Brook, NJ
After the suicide of my father when I was just ten years old, I was left wondering why? What made him feel this way? What had led up to this? Was there anything else I could have done? The older I got, the more I understood the background of it. I finally understood what he meant in his note. "I was unwell and unable to fix it." He was suffering mentally. When the pandemic hit, my mother seemed to always be in a panic. No matter the issue, she was straining herself over it and constantly faced fear. It was understandable because of the new virus, but she was getting worse even once things seemed to settle down with it. She had severe anxiety. Around the age of 16, I started to notice that my sister was acting differently. She stopped caring about the things she loved, was ready to up and leave college, and always seemed to be down in the gutter. She stopped eating and sleeping and was constantly worried about how others thought of her. She was depressed and suffering from anxiety. All three of these situations let me see what mental health can do to a person first-hand. I watched three people I loved slowly become someone they were not. It felt like I was watching them crumble in front of my eyes. All of this left me with one question, what can I do to help? When deciding what I wanted to do in my future and where I would take my life, I knew there was only one right answer. I felt these three circumstances were here to show me what I was meant to do with my life. I was here to help others who are suffering from mental health disorders. I was always eager to learn more about these things and have started to find little ways to show others that mental health matters. I would write about it in essays for English class, constantly tell my friends how they could improve their emotional hygiene, and try finding new ways to make myself approachable by empathizing with others when they came to me needing help. With the education I am pursuing in my future, I want to make an impact on other people. Whether it be one person or 1 million people, I want to be able to help. I plan to study psychology up to a doctorate level to understand this field better. I want to have the ability to make an impact like Freud and Watson. I want to know that I was able to let others understand that it is okay to feel how they do and that they have a purpose in life. I want to make a change. I also want to study forensic psychology to work with juveniles and help improve their lives. Everyone was put in this world with a purpose. Some are meant to be doctors, and others to be the next billionaire. I want to show everyone that they matter in this world and that they are essential. This world is constantly changing, in some ways better and others worse. I want to see a change for the better in the mental health rates throughout society. I want to be that change.
Caelyn Stahl
Montclair High SchoolMontclair, NJ
I am interested in art education because I thrive in chaos and mess, especially the kind that comes from a room full of children. I am an instructor at Glen Ridge Taekwon-do, where most of my time is spent teaching children aged four to six. I have been formally employed as an instructor for a bit over a year, but have been volunteering since I was nine. Further, I have run private lessons and built relationships with young girls, including the daughter of a black belt mom and master instructor dad. I volunteer as a coach at every tournament and encourage students at every promotion test. From a young age, I have been acting in the role of teacher and cheerleader and have learned just how wonderful children are. I am in awe of the joy and curiosity of children. I am inspired by the way they always want to know “why?” I am motivated by the excitement they have over the little things, things I often brush past. They remind me just how beautiful life is. However, I also understand how difficult teaching can be. Children aren’t happy all the time; sometimes, they need extra support and care. They don’t always behave and don’t always listen. Sometimes, there will be rough days. Even on those difficult days at the Taekwondo school, when students aren’t listening, when I am frustrated and tired, I still feel joyful. It is an honor to be the one to help kids learn and grow, especially on hard days. It is exciting to problem solve, coming up with new ways to teach that are more engaging. When students aren’t listening, it is often simply because they are under-stimulated and can't focus, so I create new ways to reach them. It’s exhilarating when I find a method that works, a method that turns those rough days into ones of learning and growth. I am interested in pursuing education because I love kids, on the good days and the bad. I am interested in art education because art turns the bad days to good. I know this from experience. Art is a form of education and activism. As someone with mental health struggles and ADHD, I want to be an advocate for people with similar conditions. Because of what I call my “funky” brain, my outlook on the world is often different than that of my peers. Where others walk, I run. Where others go slow, I go fast. My brain works at rapid speeds, coming up with millions of thoughts and ideas all at once, only to forget them seconds later. The worst part, though, is not these tendencies themselves, rather, it is the loneliness and isolation I have felt because of them. I thought that no one else had a “funky” brain like mine. However, in recent years I’ve discovered dozens of social media accounts run by people with ADHD who share their experiences with the public. In reading their posts, I feel less alone. As a future art teacher, my goal is to show students that they aren’t alone either. In order to make that dream a reality, I intend to get my degree in art education from The College of New Jersey. I will take full advantage of the school’s focus on hands-on learning and field experience because I cannot wait to be with the students. So, why do I want to be an art teacher? Because art education is the intersection of all my passions: art, working with children, and advocacy for people with “funky” brains like me.

FAQ

When is the scholarship application deadline?

The application deadline is Mar 1, 2024. Winners will be announced on Apr 1, 2024.

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