Perimeter College Alumnus Wins Prestigious National Scholarship

CLARKSTON, Ga. — Min Khant Zaw, who recently completed the Regents Engineering Pathway at Georgia State University's Perimeter College, is among a select group of students chosen to receive one of the nation’s largest private awards — the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship.

Zaw is the only recipient in Georgia and among only 60 students selected nationwide for this year’s cohort. An engineering scholar at Perimeter, Zaw was chosen from a pool of nearly 1,700 students from 194 community colleges across the United States.

The award, which is last-dollar funding after all institutional aid, provides students with as much as $55,000 per year for up to three years to complete a bachelor’s degree at an undergraduate institution in the United States. This makes it possible for Cooke Scholars to graduate with little to no debt and receive comprehensive advising and other program support.

“I am happy — very, very happy,” said Zaw, who learned he received the scholarship during a surprise meeting with Perimeter College Dean Barbara J. Johnson, college faculty and other supporters.

Zaw is a native of Myanmar and plans to continue his studies as a robotics major. He has already been accepted, with funding, to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), but is still waiting to hear from Cornell, Georgia Tech, Harvard, Stanford and Yale before making a decision about where he’ll go after Perimeter.

After receiving news that he’d won the Cooke scholarship, Zaw called his parents in Myanmar, where he said the country’s ongoing civil war has fanned inflation and put a huge burden on his family’s finances.

“I told them I won the scholarship, and my dad was so happy that he shouted,” Zaw said.

While at Perimeter, Zaw participated in a number of academic initiatives, including serving as president of the Clarkston Computing Science and Engineering Club (CLACEC). Under his leadership, the once-declining club grew into a dynamic organization by attracting more than 100 new members and hosting multiple events, including the annual Cardboard Boat Regatta, where students build and race cardboard boats in the school's swimming pool.

Zaw also served as a tutor in the Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement (MESA) lab and as a supplemental instruction leader for the Engineering Graphics & Design 1 course — among many other activities. He's also a Chevron Scholar, published writer and Perimeter College STAR awards honoree.

In recent years, the Honors College at Perimeter has provided focused assistance to students wanting to apply for the Jack Kent Cooke award.

“Getting to work with outstanding students like Min is one of the absolute best parts of my job,” said Lauri Goodling, associate dean of Perimeter’s Honors College.

“We rely heavily on faculty support and mentorship of these students, and Min benefitted from many, but I’m especially grateful for the efforts of Dr. Sahithya Reddivari and Dr. Kari Miller who played a huge part in getting Min across the finish line.”

This year, eight Perimeter students were named semifinalists for the scholarship.

Since 2002, 27 Perimeter students have received the scholarship, with many transferring to institutions such as MIT, Stanford, Georgia Tech, Yale and Georgia State University's Atlanta Campus.

“We are elated to celebrate Min as the 28^th student to become part of the prestigious Jack Kent Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship program,” Johnson said. “We also are incredibly proud of Min and all that he accomplished during his time as a student at Perimeter College. He definitely has a very bright future ahead of him.”

A list of this year’s Cooke Transfer Scholars, their community colleges and their hometowns can be found here.

— Story by Kysa Anderson Daniels

— Photo by Carolyn Richardson