Pacific Palisades Charter High School senior Kendal Lake is headed to Spelman College in Atlanta, thanks to a $40,000 Edison Scholars scholarship donated by Edison International, the parent company of Southern California Edison.
Lake has managed to maintain her 3.4 GPA despite the fact that she lives in Windsor Hills and has to get up at 5:30 every morning and take an hour-long bus ride to school. After school she runs track, and often doesn’t get home till 7pm.
Her hard work and dedication were rewarded this year when she was named one of 2016’s 30 Edison Scholars. More than 930 high school seniors applied for this year’s scholarships.
Scholarship applicants must have a GPA of at least 3.0, demonstrate financial need and either live or attend high school in a Southern California Edison service area. Applicants must also plan to attend a four-year college and major in electrical, environmental, mechanical, civil, computer or industrial engineering or computer sciences/information systems or environmental sciences.
Lake plans on studying environmental science at the all-black women’s college next year and added that while part of the money will be used for her studies, some of the funds will help her parents take care of her older sister, who suffers from lupus.
Edison International has awarded $5.3 million in scholarships to 520 students since 2006. Tammy Tumbling, SCE’s director of Philanthropy and Community Investment, said Lake is exactly the type of student the scholarships are designed for. “We want students like Kendal to be able to pursue their dreams and take advantage of the opportunities they have earned,” Tumbling said.
As for Lake? Upon being presented an oversized check during a surprise ceremony in her biology class that was also attended by her parents, she said, “I think Edison is great. This is so generous.”
