Gregory-area student Brianna Polenz wins prestigious scholarship

by Shuyler Clark

Brianna Polenz feels confident in her ability to afford university thanks to a $25,000 scholarship award from the Horatio Alger Association. Photo provided by Brianna Polenz

Seventeen-year-old Brianna Polenz has long aspired to pursue a higher education regardless of financial obstacles. As one of 105 recipients of the Horatio Alger National Scholarship, she now feels confident in her ability to afford university.

Initially the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, Inc. awarded its scholarships annually to high school seniors across the United States and Canada. The organization now offers the $25,000 awards to juniors “in support of early intervention by providing resources throughout the college selection and application process,” according to an August press release. 

Since beginning its scholarship programs in 1984, the organization has gifted $253 million in aid to students like Polenz.

Polenz first learned of the scholarship from her academic counselor in an email mentioning an additional poetry-oriented opportunity. Initially disregarding the missive due to the poetry aspect, Polenz later returned to the email and found she met the criteria for the Horatio Alger National Scholarship.

Upon applying, Polenz was told recipients would be announced by the end of April. When the appointed time passed and she had received no word, she was ready to move on to other opportunities. But to her surprise, an email arrived in May informing her she had been chosen as one of the national scholarship recipients.

“I’m doing my schoolwork, and I check my email for a security code, and there it is,” she recalls. “I called my grandma and I’m like, ‘I think I got that scholarship.’ And I was…I don’t want to say dumbfounded, but it was very unexpected.”

Currently studying full time at both Stockbridge Junior/Senior High School and Lansing Community College, Polenz actively engages in both academics and extracurriculars. In addition to figure skating at the Arctic Coliseum in Chelsea, she also participates in the Stockbridge InvenTeam and National Honor Society. 

Although she has already been accepted to Oakland University and Eastern Michigan University, Polenz aims to attend her dream school, the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

“It’s very rigorous academically,” she said, “and I’ve always tried to push myself with school, so I feel like I’d be a lot more proud of myself if I graduated from…something with that academic rigor.”

The university’s beautiful campus, financial aid offerings, figure skating program, and advocacy groups are also positive draws for Polenz. She is already thinking beyond her undergraduate studies, and says that once she obtains her degree in biopsychology, she plans on pursuing psychiatry.

For other students facing financial setbacks yet still desiring a higher education, Polenz has advice in seeking scholarships: “Everyone has different talents and everybody has different needs, so look out for scholarships that apply to you or would make you stand out.” 

At the same time, she recommends, “Don’t disregard anything just because you think it might not apply.”

In addition, she offers a simple yet sage piece of wisdom: listen to your academic counselors.

As the largest privately funded scholarship provider in the country, the Horatio Alger Association is highly selective, offering scholarships to students with a minimum 3.95 GPA and an average household income of $23,995. In addition to the scholarships, the organization offers recipients financial aid counseling, college selection advising and success seminars, 24/7 mental health support, and emergency funding for students affected by crises.

The Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans is dedicated to the simple but powerful belief that hard work, honesty and determination can conquer all obstacles. Image credit: horatioalger.org