Jasper County 2016 grads earn more than $3 million in scholarships

The 126 members of the Ridgeland-Hardeeville High Class of 2016 earned $3.4 million in scholarship offers.

Some graduates will attend such schools as South Carolina State University, Winthrop, Charleston Southern and Claflin, while others will enter the regional workforce or join the military.

“This is an amazing class of young men and women, very determined, very dedicated, and very open to great opportunities in their futures,” said RHHS Principal Dr. Karen Parker.

The Class of 2016 is the first to have started at the consolidated Ridgeland-Hardeeville High and graduated with all four years spent on the campus.

The valedictorian was Kayla Hasty and salutatorian was Myrandi Roper.

“I expect great things from this group of young people,” School Board Chairman Tedd Moyd said. “They are smart and they are focused. They are going to make Jasper County proud.”

The top 10 percent of graduates at Ridgeland-Hardeeville High School, with their current amount of scholarships, grade point average, and their chosen schools:

1. Kayla Hasty $571,030 4.7 S. C. State Univ. on Presidential Scholarship

2. MyRandi Roper $210,180 4.5 S. C. State Univ. on Presidential Scholarship

3. Christiana Kinard $20,000 4.3 Armstrong State University

4. Carmen Hamilton $167,100 4.2 Charleston Southern University

5. Ny’Jae Boozer $145,020 4.1 Coastal Carolina University

6. Bendrea Washington $20,000 4.1 Presbyterian College

7. Jayme Chisholm $80,260 4.1 USC Aiken

8. Blake Osting $131,460 4.0 Coastal Carolina University

9. Shianne Horne $20,000 4.0 TCL/National Guard Army

10. Esveidi Noriega $125,736 4.0 Claflin Univ. on Honors College Scholarship

11. Diana Solis-Flores $20,000 3.9 Undecided

12. Ariel Webber $157,988 3.9 Winthrop University

13. Jami’ya Taylor $83,460 3.9 Claflin University

The Top 10 percent of graduates alone received $1,752,234 in scholarship offers.

Kayla Hasty, MyRandi Roper, and Carmen Hamilton each earned 24 college credits while attending Ridgeland-Hardeeville High as part of a dual-enrollment program. Shianne Horne and Ny'Jae Boozer each earned 12 college credits.

This story was originally published June 2, 2016 at 3:56 PM with the headline "Jasper County 2016 grads earn more than $3 million in scholarships."