Annually, Eglet Adams offers a scholarship to three students who are committed to protecting the rights of others and are involved in improving their communities.
In its third year, the Eglet Adams Community Involvement Scholarship assists recipients in furthering their education so that they may reach their goals focused on making the world a better place. The scholarship is open to any student in good academic standing, who is currently enrolled in an accredited undergraduate, graduate, or professional program in the United States.
At Eglet Adams, we are committed to supporting the community around us. In 2004, we began awarding law school scholarships to students in need. In 2013, the scholarship was focused on third-year law students at the William S. Boyd School of Law in Las Vegas. Eglet Adams provides a student’s third-year law school tuition, books, and an internship opportunity at the firm.
In addition to supporting the Boyd School of Law, we happily support many local charities and associations, including but not limited to the Alzheimer’s Association, Make a Wish Foundation, Opportunity Village, Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, and Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. The Eglet Adams Community Involvement Scholarship was created as a way for the firm to support students outside of Nevada in their endeavors to improve the world around them. By investing in the education of a student who wants to promote, and uphold values and goals similar to our own, we feel that we are investing in a more positive future.
We received more than 550 applications for the 2022 community involvement scholarship. After a lengthy review and a very difficult decision process, the three recipients are featured below. We are honored to support the education of these three students as they work to improve their communities and dedicate their careers to helping others.
Read the excerpts below to learn about our 2022 community involvement scholarship winners.
Jessica Ekeya
Jessica is originally from Vancouver, WA. She graduated from Harvard College in 2019 with a major in biology and minors in Spanish and American Sign Language. After graduation, Jessica conducted a year-long traveling fellowship in Colombia. She then returned to the United States to work as a research assistant at Gallaudet University. Jessica is currently a first-year medical student at the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine. As a member of the school’s Primary Care Program, her goal is to become a primary care clinician and community health advocate. As she is fluent in both ASL and Spanish, she is committed to working with Deaf patients and Spanish-speaking patients who do not feel comfortable communicating in English. Jessica plans to focus on these and other underserved communities in her future career. In her free time, she enjoys reading, traveling, and dancing.
David Sarmiento
David is currently completing his undergraduate degree at the University of Illinois at Chicago, pursuing a bachelor’s degree in criminal law and in psychology. He will begin law school next fall at Washington University in St. Louis. While pursuing his law degree, David will focus on international human rights. In the future, David hopes to clerk for a federal judge and to work for a law firm that tackles immigration and other public interest matters.
Sofia Melnychuck
Sofia Melnychuck has a deep passion for helping others. A brain injury survivor, Sofia’s mission to spread brain injury, brain health, and invisible disability awareness inspired her TEDx talk, children’s neuroscience workshop series, and website with free resources for children to learn about the brain. As chairwoman of Brain Injury Alliance of Arizona, she received the Mayor’s Proclamation and spoke at conferences. She wrote and illustrated, Brain Power: Neurology for Kids!, as well as nine other books currently in print to promote healthcare literacy and bullying prevention amongst children.
She also leads a team of young women and is National Co-Director of ThinkSTEAM, a non-profit company empowering girls to enter STEM fields through the arts. From conducting research at the University of Arizona to serving as an academic tutor, she’s always sharing her love of learning. For her undergraduate studies, Sofia will be studying computational neuroscience to leverage artificial intelligence in healthcare by making diagnostic metrics more precise and efficient. She plans to supplement this with a minor in history to research the intersectionality of social justice movements. Sofia ultimately plans to become a pediatric neurologist to serve patients in a clinical setting.
Learn more about the Eglet Adams Community Involvement Scholarship and apply for the 2023 award.
