For Immediate Release: iUrban Teen to Recognize Local Youth with iSucceed Scholarships


For Immediate Release – 06/10/2019

Media Contact: info@iurbanteen.org

iUrban Teen to Recognize Local Youth with iSucceed Scholarships

iUrban Teen to Recognize Local Youth with 2019 iSucceed Scholarships Teens Pursuing STEM+Arts Careers to be Awarded Scholarships in June 15th Ceremony

Portland, OR — iUrban Teen, a nationally recognized and multi-state program delivering career-focused education to underrepresented teens, will be hosting its third annual Graduation Ceremony and iSucceed Scholarship Awards on Saturday, June 15, 2019 in the NWEA building at 121 NW Everett Street Portland, OR. The event will celebrate the graduation of fourteen students who have actively participated in iUrban programs throughout their middle school and high school careers. Six Portland teens, Brycen Campbell, Gearicen Campbell, Mauricio Somilleda-Ruiz, Zoe Getchell, Flora Abrams, and Brooklyn Terry will each be presented a $2,000 scholarship. Daniel Capuia, Co-Founder of the Capuia Foundation, a Portland-based non-profit with a mission to improve economic conditions in Angola, Africa, will be the guest speaker at this event.

Brycen Campbell is graduating from Jefferson High School, Portland, OR, and will attend Portland State University to study Business Management and Product Design. He has participated in numerous iUrban Teen programs including music production and build your own computer. Brycen generously volunteers, and ushers, at Life Change Church.

Gearicen Campbell is also graduating from Jefferson High School, Portland, OR, where he took numerous dual credit courses and will attend the University of Oregon to study global
marketing. Gearicen has participated in numerous iUrban Teen programs including music production and build your own computer. He also volunteered at Schools Uniting Neighborhoods after school program and has been a part of SEI’s Male Leadership Program.

Mauricio Somilleda-Ruiz is graduating from Jefferson High School, Portland, OR. As the first person in his family to attend college, he will attend Oregon State University where he will study marine biology. Mauricio has been a long-time participant in iUrban Teen programs including iEngage, iLearn, and iSucceed. He has also attended numerous STEM tours and STEM Summits.

Zoe Getchell is graduating from Lincoln High School, Portland, OR, and will attend Portland State University. In addition to working while she was in high school, Zoe volunteered with SOLV and worked as a leader with Girl Scout Camp Mountainside.

Flora Abrams is graduating from Cleveland High School, Portland, OR, with a 4.0 GPA. She will be attending the University of Washington to study biomedical engineering. Flora was the team captain for her FIRST Robotics team.

Brooklyn Terry is graduating from iTech Preparatory in Vancouver, WA. Her intuitive interest in technology and robotics began in 5th grade when she took apart a remote control and worked to put it back together again. Through Robotics camps and competitions, Brooklyn
became the lead coder and programmer for several state robotics competitions. With the support of her family, over three years of educational iUrban Teen engagement, and faith in God, Brooklyn will be attending Bennett College this fall and majoring in Computer Engineering and Global Studies.

As part of their efforts to encourage high school graduation and extended learning, iUrban Teen offered two scholarships in 2017, three in 2018 and now six in 2019. The scholarship gives preference to any current or past participants in iUrban Teen’s programs who are residents of the Portland metro area. Applicants must have been accepted to or enrolled in, an accredited two, or four-year degree or technical/career program.

“Our iSucceed scholarships, and scholarships of this type, help make higher education possible for young people and further iUrban Teen’s mission to expose and inspire
underrepresented youth to earn a college education and become tomorrow’s business and technology leaders,” said Deena Pierott founder and chief innovator of iUrban Teen. Ms. Pierott was honored as a Champion of Change by President Barack Obama in 2013 for her work with young learners from communities that are historically underserved or
underrepresented in STEM fields.

Patricia Raicht, Senior Vice President, National Director of JLL, and Portland Executive Council Chair of iUrban Teen said “We are so proud of all our iUrban Teen graduates and are so pleased to be able to provide six exceptional students with these scholarships and wish them much success in their endeavors.”

For more information on iUrban Teen or the iSucceed Scholarship Program and to donate please visit our website at www.iurbanteen.org

About iUrban Teen – iUrban Teen is a not-for-profit 501 (c)(3) nationally recognized program dedicated to bringing career-focused education to underrepresented teens ages 13 to 18. Youth receive hands-on exposure to a variety of careers and civic engagement that step them outside of their current boundaries. Our target demographics are African American, Latino and Native American males; however, the program is inclusive of all youth. We have almost equal parity of girls that participate in our programs and youth with special needs. iUrban Teen programs are now in Washington, Oregon, California, and Texas.

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