Enrichment Workshops and Academic Award Presentations Take Place at Dublin High

Middle and high school students from across the central coast of California traveled to  on Saturday to attend "Spotlight on Your Future" — the California Scholarship Federation's (CSF) annual spring conference.

CSF (for high-school students) and its middle-school counterpart, CJSF (California Junior Scholarship Federation), are volunteer organizations committed to recognizing academic and community service excellence.

CSF celebrates an anniversary Oct. 15, 90 years after founder Charles F. Seymour established the organization to recognize outstanding students (a detailed history is available here).

Saturday's conference included workshops, presentations and the announcement of 2011 Seymour and Huhn finalists and award winners. Seymour awards recognize outstanding high-school students and Huhn awards recognize outstanding middle-school students. Each Seymour finalist receives $2,000 and each Huhn winner receives $250.

The 2011 Seymour Award was granted to Emelyn Erickson from Las Lomas High School in Walnut Creek. Erickson received an additional $3,000 for her achievement. She is president of the CSF chapter at Las Lomas High School as well as president of several other clubs (including the French and Spanish clubs), and a member of the school's mock trial team.

Erickson has spent her summers traveling the world, from volunteering in Nicaragua at a medical clinic to tutoring English in Japan. Her experience in Nicaragua inspired her to pursue a career in the medical field focused on underserved areas. Erickson will take a step toward that dream when she enters Duke University in the fall, where she will major in global health.

Included with this article is a video of each Seymour finalist and his or her academic and service record. The achievements of these students are impressive and inspiring.

Leading up to the final award ceremony, Dublin High School offered a series of workshops, including a robotics demonstration by the DHS Robotics Club, a workshop on "How to Manage Your Stress and Your Time," a "Fun with Chemistry" session led by DHS science teacher Kim Baumann, a workshop on "Enhancing Your Leadership Skills" presented by Mayor Tim Sbranti and an overview of "The College Admission Process" by DHS counselor Caroline Rubio.

The Dublin High Gourmet Gaels catered breakfast and lunch, and the DHS Jazz Combo provided entertainment. The Dublin High School event was the fifth in a series of CSF / CJSF conferences held across California. Fallon Middle School and Dublin High School have active and growing CJSF and CSF chapters. 

Middle and high school parents interested in Dublin's CSF/CJSF programs can contact Bryce Custodio of the Dublin Unified School District at CustodioBryce@dublinusd.org.