Vititoe Law Group is excited to announce that Joseph W. Cook is the winner of the 2015 James W. Vititoe Award, a college scholarship that was created to recognize a Ventura County high school student who both excels academically and demonstrates outstanding leadership potential.
Joseph is an outstanding young man that will be attending the University of Notre Dame in the fall and will be majoring in Physics. He is the son of a Navy Officer who as a result of his father’s job, has lived all throughout the United States and overseas.
Along with information about their GPA and extra-curricular activities, applicants were asked to write a story, essay, poem, etc. of 1,500 words or less on the following theme: How has having a family member serve in the armed forces shaped who you are today? One of the many lines that stood out in Joseph’s application is the following:
“These cultural experiences have been the most significant way that my father’s service in the Navy has shaped me, but seeing how most military members sacrifice to serve their country has inspired me to do the same.
In order to do their job, military members have to sacrifice their personal time with family and friends, better paying jobs in the private sector, and in some cases even their bodies and lives. Through my experience as a military brat, these sacrifices have been prominent in my life and formed my appreciation for service, whether to family, local community, or country.”
We would like to thank all the wonderful students who applied for this scholarship- the response was amazing and we received some outstanding applications.
James W. Vititoe Award Candidate Criteria
The scholarship application was made available to high school seniors who are residents of Southern California that reside within Ventura County. Candidates for this award are daughters, stepdaughters, sons, stepsons, grandsons, stepgrandsons, granddaughters, step-granddaughters, great-granddaughters, step-greatgranddaughters, great-grandsons or step-great-grandsons of veterans who served in the Armed Forces.
To be eligible for this award, applicants must have met the following criteria:
- Have a GPA of 3.0 or higher
- Be entering freshman year in college in 2015
- Plan to declare a major in any field of study
- Be a U.S. citizen or have permanent residency
