Grayslake Central junior stunned after learning he won a $40K College Board scholarship; ‘I don’t really know what to think right now’

Grayslake Central junior Isaac Erski woke up Tuesday morning and made his way to school like any other day, clueless that life was about to change for the better.

Erski said he can’t quite remember the 10 minutes or so he and his mother, Tracy, spent exploring the College Board’s Big Future career and college exploratory website several months back.

But, that doesn’t matter. By visiting the page and engaging with some of its programs, such as a career quiz and search tool, Erski earned a chance at being selected as one of the College Board’s monthly $500 or $40,000 scholarship winners.

He found out he landed the big prize — the $40,000 scholarship award — in front of his peers in science class, as representatives from the College Board congratulated him and then presented details about opportunities available to all high schoolers.

“I’m still just surprised, honestly,” Erski said shortly after the revelation. “I’m excited, but I don’t really know what to think right now.”

The soaring costs to attend college are a well-known fact of American life these days, and to Erski, too, who said he is “happy that I don’t have to worry about the money as much.”

The award will open new doors and possibilities for Erski, an AP calculus student who enjoys playing video games and has an interest in astronomy and computer science.

The scholarship comes as a massive relief for Erski’s parents, Tracy and Ted, who said they have been saving for Isaac and his sister Clementine’s educations since they were born.

“He’s just got so much potential, and this is such a relief,” Tracy said. “Like (Isaac) said, the college decision won’t necessarily have to come down to who is giving us the best aid package now. This gives us a little more breathing room to go with what’s the best, or the school he wants the most.”

Ted said, “He’ll be able to tap into his interests and his talents, and what more could you want? That’s the key. Wherever his interests lie, I want those doors to open.”

Turning toward Clementine, Ted added, “Guess what you’re going to be filling out next year.”

Michael Nick, the College Board’s director of state and district partnerships for Illinois, explained that the Big Future program is geared toward eliminating barriers to college education. Its scholarship awards have no grade-point average or essay requirements, and since its inception in 2018 about 16,000 kids have been awarded more than $19 million in scholarships.

Erski became the first Lake County winner of the $40,000 Big Future prize, according to Nick, joining previous Illinois winners from Chicago, East Moline and Winnebago.

“We think (Big Future) is an important place for students to take these steps where they can learn about 4,000 different colleges, where they can investigate what’s a good fit for them,” Nick said. “They can explore scholarship opportunities and be connected with over $4 billion in scholarships (from various sources) by putting in what their interests are, what their academic successes have been.

“They can also explore careers by taking a career quiz, putting their likes or dislikes in and seeing what jobs or majors might be good for them,” he said.

Grayslake Central principal Dan Landry was all smiles Tuesday morning, recalling when he received notice that one of his students had struck scholastic gold.

“Best email I’ve ever read,” Landry said.

Erski acknowledged that the college search and the question of what career to pursue are intimidating, but his father wanted him to know he has plenty of people in his corner as he begins to plan for his future.

“A lot of people have your back, (Isaac), that’s another thing,” Ted said. “Think of the people in this room. We’re all behind you, and we want to see you succeed.”

The stunned winner did impart a few wise words for classmates who he hopes may follow in his fortune.

“Well, do the thing that I don’t remember doing,” Erski said. “You’ll have a very small chance of winning money.”