Kennesaw State University's Student Spotlight Feb. 2020

February TRIO Student Spotlight Kennesaw State University’s TRIO Programs honored three high school students this month for their accomplishments within the Upward Bound grant programs offered at KSU’s Paulding Site through several area high schools.
The three KSU TRIO Programs support the communities of Paulding and Polk counties – at Rockmart, Cedartown, East Paulding, and Hiram high schools – by improving the disparate representation that many groups face in collegiate environments. TRIO student participants are held to rigorous academic standards, participate in multiple programs for the purpose of college preparation, and perform community service regularly.
To honor students in the TRIO program who have distinguished themselves among the 180 peers in the program, KSU’s Paulding Site is recognizing three students each month for their efforts.

Elio Vargas (East Paulding High School)
Elio Vargas is in the 12th grade, has a 3.8 GPA and scored a 28 on his ACT. Vargas has been an integral part of the Upward Bound – Math-Science (UBMS) Program from its start in 2017. According to his mentor, he always wears a smile, is respectful to adults as well as his peers, and is always ready to lend a helping hand. Vargas has also been involved with the TRIO Drone Program and is currently in Phase 3 preparing to take the FAA test to become a certified drone pilot. Vargas plans to attend Kennesaw State University in the fall.
Chenese Griffith (Hiram)
Chenese Griffith has been an Upward Bound (UB) member since 2017 and has attended above 80 percent of all TRIO activities during both the academic year and summer academies. She is currently a senior who has committed to Albany State, where she will major in forensics. Griffith makes a point to stop by the UB office every day to check-in and offer to help during her free period. According to her mentors, she is smart, motivated, and always willing to help others.
Zykarius “Zy” Harshaw (Rockmart and Cedartown High Schools)
Rockmart High School Junior Zykarius “Zy” Harshaw has been a part of the program since its launch in 2017. This past fall, Harshaw participated in the program’s ACT Boot Camp and dedicated every Saturday for nine weeks to prep for the ACT. In December, he took his first ACT and scored a 21, the highest score in the program to date. Harshaw was selected to apply to the National Center for Student Leadership conference at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. to partake in a mock congress, leadership training, and cultural events.