The Wasatch Education Foundation on Monday night awarded $465,000 in scholarships to 271 seniors in the Class of 2026, a record amount for the nonprofit organization.
Applause and happy hoots from the senior section were irrepressible at the start of the event. But as the awards turned into a two-hour procession of names, the students fell into a familiar, funny rhythm, letting out a single, collective clap after each name was announced.
Over 100 donors funded the scholarships. They included local families, parent networks, businesses and organizations ranging from Intermountain Health Heber Valley Hospital to the Wasatch County Sheriff’s Office.
Some brand-new scholarships were awarded this year.
For example, the Joe Witt Future Builders Legacy Scholarship was awarded to five students from the homebuilding course to support their careers in the trades. It was established by Joe Witt’s siblings, Bonnie Witt Vance and Ben Witt, after the homebuilder and volunteer instructor for the course died in an avalanche while snowmobiling in the Snake Creek area in February.
“We have enough in the funds now to do this every year, probably give out five to six (scholarships) … for the rest of our lives,” Bonnie said.
The Summit Pride Foundation also awarded a scholarship at Wasatch High School for the first time. Maghie Ingols-Pennington, president of the high school’s Gay Straight Alliance, was recognized for her support of LGBTQ+ students.
“I’m not part of the LGBTQ community myself, but I love supporting it,” she said. “I just feel like it makes sense to treat everybody equally and give equal opportunities to everyone.”
Ingols-Pennington plans to study political science at the University of Utah, launching her into whatever career lets her travel the most — a diplomat, she hopes.
The scholarship night was especially significant for recipients of We Rise scholarships, which are awarded to first-generation college students. A board of first-generation Wasatch High School alumni launched the program through the nonprofit Wasatch Education Foundation in the spring of 2021. This year, 24 students received We Rise scholarships.
Wesley Bailey, right, receives a Wasatch Education Foundation scholarship. Credit: Christopher Reeves 
Recipients of the Wasatch County Sheriff’s Office Scholarship gather onstage on Monday. Credit: Christopher Reeves 
Jeff Danley, president of the nonprofit Wasatch Education Foundation, applauds the Class of 2026 during the Wasatch High School scholarship night on Monday. Credit: Christopher Reeves 
Recipients of the Steve and Vicky Stevens Center for Advanced Professional Studies scholarship gather onstage on Monday. Credit: Christopher Reeves
Among those 24 were Jazmine Ramirez Parks and Alexander Velazquez Bobadilla.
They were recognized for completing their associate’s degrees through Utah Valley University during high school, and both plan on attending the University of Utah in the fall.
Velazquez Bobadilla will study mechanical engineering. He’s drawn to the creative problem-solving of the profession.
He wrestled as a junior but dropped out of the team to focus on his studies and work, which he does pretty much constantly at Wendy’s and Walmart.
“I have lots of money saved for college,” he explained.
Velazquez Bobadilla’s father is a chef, and his mother is a housekeeper.
“They always tell me, ‘Keep pushing. We need to break the cycle,’” he said. “I have kind of a lot of pressure, but I like it because that’s where I do my best.”
Ramirez Parks described her friend as “bubbly” and able to get along with anyone but serious when he needs to be. Velazquez Bobadilla offered her a fist bump in response to the compliment.
Ramirez Parks plans to get her prerequisites for medical school so she can become a surgeon.
She’s wanted to be in the medical field ever since she watched her childhood hero, Doc McStuffins, of the animated Disney Junior show of the same name, give operations and check-ups to toys. Now, Ramirez Parks is a certified nursing assistant at Heber Valley Assisted Living.
“(My parents) told me that if I find happiness in doing that, and if I … truly enjoy helping people, and it’s not all about the money, to go the route that I want to do, just figure out the rest when it comes,” she said.
Ramirez Parks said one of her greatest challenges during high school was her parents’ divorce during her sophomore year — something she chose to approach as a stepping stone instead of a stumbling block.
“That just helped me keep pushing for the sake of my mom and myself,” she said.
Right: Recipients of the We Rise Continuing Scholarship, including Alexander Velazquez Bobadilla.
Velazquez Bobadilla and Ramirez Parks agreed that fitting in was a challenge throughout high school.
“Being from a different culture … sometimes you fit in, but only into a certain group. It always feels like you don’t fit in, and you have to find your way in,” Velazquez Bobadilla said.
Ramirez Parks added, “My last name is Parks, so yes, everyone thinks I’m American, but I do have a Mexican mom. … It is kind of hard to fit in because everyone’s like, ‘Oh, you’re American. You have a lot of money.’ There’s a whole stereotype. It’s like, ‘No, complete opposite, actually.’”
Ramirez Parks found community in the high school’s Latinos In Action club. As president, she tried to shatter the conception that Latinos In Action is “boring” — for example, by organizing and fundraising a trip to Disneyland for members in March. Despite that, Velazquez Bobadilla didn’t join the club, which Ramirez Parks jokingly gave him a hard time about.
Kim Danely, the high school’s college success advisor, said a common denominator among first-generation college students is how hard they work, never using academic responsibilities as an excuse not to be involved in service or career advancement opportunities.
Danley is a first-generation college student herself. She said scholarships were instrumental in her ability to get a bachelor’s degree in conservation biology from Brigham Young University and a master’s degree in environmental management from Yale University.
“(My parents) were very supportive of it, but they had no money to help me, and they didn’t really know how to help me navigate it, either,” she said.
That’s why each student in the We Rise program is assigned a volunteer mentor — whether it be a Wasatch High School alumnus, a trusted adult or older college students — to answer any questions they have about the college experience and help them look for jobs after graduating.
Danley said college — and education in general — can change a student’s life.
“It opens up the world to you and helps you appreciate everything. When I listen to music now, because I minored in music, I see it in the context of the history of music. And when I go on a hike in the forest, I don’t just see green. I see 50 different plant species,” she said. “It helps you connect with people. You can have a conversation with anyone in any field. … And then, I think it gives you an opportunity (to) give back to the community because it gives you a broader vision of the world.”