SHS Scholarship Recipient Joseph Boppell Destined For Greatness
Joseph Boppell
The Casey Feldman Foundation is proud to have awarded Joseph Boppell a Springfield High School (SHS) scholarship this year. Joseph’s application essay warmed our hearts. Received afterwards, the counselor and teachers’ recommendations, resume, and transcript in Joseph’s case were icing on the cake that further revealed an outstanding young man.
First Generation College Student Wanting to Help Family
The essay prompt was, “Twenty years from now, where do you see yourself and what impact do you think your life will have had on others, your community or the world?” This led Joseph to reveal that he is a first-generation college student from a hardworking family who wants to help support his parents in a happy retirement and also continue to take care of his special needs brother into the future. His father taught him the value of hard work and has worked “tirelessly” to support the family, and his mother taught him to “care for others.”
Majoring in Computer Science to Make the World a Better Place
Joseph will finance his education at Penn State University through loans and scholarships and major in computer science. According to his high school counselor, Kelly Pedrotti, Joseph is tech savvy, his passion for computers and technology started at a young age when at 10 years old he turned a generic PC into a computer that ran MAC OS.
Joseph sees computer science as enabling him to “make the world a better place.” Joseph stated, “ I could be working for an organization that uses sophisticated tools and programs to help solve environmental problems. I could work for an organization that creates healthcare devices and medicines to save lives….its applications to improve lives are virtually limitless.”
Chose Penn State University to Continue With THON
Joseph chose Penn State not only because of their strong academics and computer science program but also because it will enable him to continue to give back through involvement with THON, an organization that he was involved in throughout high school, raising some $250,000 for childhood cancer. His high school counselor noted that Joseph was appointed by a group of teachers as leader of the Operations Committee his senior year, with a large group of students under his direction. Pedrotti stated, “This is a really big deal. Students on leadership are our most trusted, respected, and self-aware students. To be named to leadership they must go through an intensive interview and recommendation process”, noting Joseph’s strong leadership skills both inside and outside of school.
Top of His High School Class
Joseph also stands out academically, being 13th in his class. He has taken honors classes throughout high school and some seven AP classes, including physics, calculus, computer science and English, earning near-perfect grades in all of them. Joseph has done this while also being a “driving force” on the varsity football team throughout high school and working 15 hours per week as a food server and busser.
Views the Glass Half Full
“Joseph is the type of person who views the glass as half full,” added Kelly. “He has a positive, upbeat personality, and he always looks for the good…I know Joe is destined for greatness.”
We couldn’t be more proud to have awarded Joseph Boppell a scholarship that bears our daughter’s name.
