4 students awarded QuestBridge scholarships - Riverside Press-Enterprise

MONTCLAIR HIGH SCHOOL

4 students awarded QuestBridge scholarships

At an event in February, Don English, left, president of the Chaffey Joint Union High School District’s Board of Education, congratulates Montclair High School students who were awarded QuestBridge scholarships. From left, they are Arden Zheng, Eileen Leong, Kyle Mai and Daniel Rico Rodriguez. At right is Joshua Cho, principal of Montclair High School. Steve Lambert — for the Chaffey Joint Union High School District

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Four Montclair High School students have been awarded QuestBridge scholarships, providing them with fully paid college educations.

The competitive QuestBridge program selects students based on academic excellence, financial need and personal qualities and matches them with a college or university that best fits their profile. The selected students are then offered early admission and a full four-year scholarship covering tuition, housing, food and other expenses.

The four Montclair High School students selected for QuestBridge scholarships are Elieen Leong and Arden Zheng, both matched with Princeton University; Kyle Mai, matched with Stanford University; and Daniel Rico Rodriguez, matched with the University of Chicago.

“Throughout my high school journey, I have taken 10 AP classes and have been involved in many extracurriculars. I have also been involved with my community, teaching young kids Buddhist culture and values weekly,” Elieen Leong, who plans to major in biological and chemical engineering, said in a news release from the Chaffey Joint Union High School District.

“Although this journey wasn’t easy as the first female in my family to be in higher education, with hard work and dedication, I was able to reach new heights. I would like to thank my family for being the people to push me the hardest, and QuestBridge for providing me with this wonderful opportunity,” Leong said.

Kyle Mai plans to major in electrical engineering and computer science. “As a low-income, first-generation college student, I have set my career goals and aspirations based on what I’ve learned from a DIY robotics project. In the summer of 2024, I decided to research and design my own RC car, inspired by YouTube models,” Mai said in the news release.

Daniel Rico Rodriguez plans to major in computer science. “Although I was born in the U.S., I spent my childhood in Mexico, which was a whole different world for me. It took a lot for me to adapt to these new ways and display myself academically and in other aspects,” Rodriguez said in the news release.

“The pandemic for me delayed the progress of self-progression and discovery. When I arrived at Montclair High School, all I knew was that I wanted to be the best student-athlete I could be. As I progressed through my high school years, I tried to challenge myself a little more each time,” Rodriguez said.

“I believe my tenacity and determination put to life in my essays helped during my admissions process and got me accepted,” Arden Zheng said in the news release. “In addition, I took over my school’s robotics club, coming up with interesting projects and teaching students engineering skills, and overall inspiring me to cofound an engineering club to expand my reach.”

“We are incredibly proud to recognize Eileen, Kyle, Daniel and Arden for their outstanding achievements,” Montclair High School Principal Joshua Cho said during a recent presentation to the Chaffey Joint Union High School District Board of Trustees, according to the news release. “Their hard work, creativity and leadership have earned them full QuestBridge scholarships to some of the nation’s top universities. May their success inspire all of us to continue to do our best.”