Mead Hall student earns prestigious scholarship to Presbyterian College
May 31—Esther Marks is a senior at Mead Hall Episcopal School who has received a full ride scholarship to a private South Carolina university.
Marks received the Griffith Scholarship, which will allow her to attend Presbyterian College with all expenses paid. She was additionally accepted into Furman University, Wingate University, Winthrop University, Bryn Mawr College and Davidson College.
"I was really happy to get into those colleges too," Marks said.
At Presbyterian, Marks plans to study biology on the pre-medical track with a dream of becoming a doctor.
The Griffith Scholarship is Presbyterian's most prestigious award, given each year to two high school seniors. The scholarship is by invitation exclusively, meaning that only select students are asked to apply.
"It felt really great," Marks said about learning she'd received a full ride. "I was very excited, because it takes a lot of pressure off, not having to worry about which student loans you're going to have to take, and it makes a lot of the decision making easier."
Marks has been attending Mead Hall since kindergarten.
"I think this school has definitely given me a place where I can just stand out a lot. It gives a lot of opportunities for me to lead certain groups like taking a role in [the] Environmental Club," she said.
Marks said that she learned a lot as a younger student about interacting with adults, which helped her out during the interview-heavy application process for the Griffith Scholarship.
"Mrs. Gordon, our old headmaster, she used to always greet us at the carline and be like, 'OK, now shake my hand. Say good morning Mrs. Gordon!' And you know, as a kid, that's a big deal ... it's interacting with an adult in a professional way," she said. "Being able to use some of those skills that Mead Hall taught me helped a lot."
Marks said that she's been enjoying finding things to put in her future dorm room and that she's "really looking forward to seeing the campus on PC and the community there."
She said that once she's at the school, she's interested in getting involved with the Ecology Club and its composting and pollinator garden.
"I just love being able to help out wherever I can," she said.
Marks credits her mom for helping her find her charisma when talking with people, and her dad for teaching her that hard work will eventually bring in results.
"I definitely want to say thank you to my parents," she said.
Lindsay Tucker, academic dean and registrar at Mead Hall, said: "Esther is a phenomenal student. She has worked really hard all of her years here at Mead Hall. I have only witnessed this two years, her junior and senior years, but Esther is always willing to pitch in, she's always willing to help, and just run things and you can always count on her leadership abilities and her drive."
"The scholarship is amazing, but it's not a shock, because she has worked so hard," added Tucker. "It's well deserved, and we're very proud of her ... we know she will go to do bigger and better things."
