2023 Alumnae Scholarship Recipient Announced
Ishwari Bhatt Selected By Joyce Ivy Alumnae
ANN ARBOR, MI, April 18, 2023 – The Joyce Ivy Foundation recently announced the names of eighty-six young women receiving 2023 summer scholarships for pre-college study at highly selective colleges and universities. From the group of 2023 Joyce Ivy Foundation Summer Scholars, Ishwari Bhatt, a sophomore at Portage Central High School in Kalamazoo, Michigan, has been selected to receive the 2023 Alumnae Scholarship.
Since 2013, the Joyce Ivy Foundation has designated a Scholar in the incoming cohort as an Alumnae Scholarship recipient. This student is selected directly by Joyce Ivy alumnae, and her scholarship is supported by gifts made by the alumnae community throughout the year, including during the annual Giving Tuesday and Pay-it-Forward campaigns. To date, the Joyce Ivy Foundation has named 1136 Summer Scholars, including eighty-six members of the 2023 cohort.
“The ability to stay involved in the empowering community of Joyce Ivy scholars, while simultaneously creating opportunities for more women in the Midwest, has been amazing,” said Elise Essenmacher, JIF ‘20 and Co-Senior Fellow for Alumnae Giving. “Thanks to the efforts of all of our Joyce Ivy alumnae, this year’s Giving Tuesday campaign was our most successful to date. I am so grateful to be able to support a new cohort of inspiring young women, like Ishwari, as they join this community of leaders.”
Ishwari Bhatt is a standout student at Portage Central High School, ranking in the top 5% of her class, while also taking courses at the Kalamazoo Area Mathematics and Science Center, an option for gifted and talented students in her region. She is most passionate about STEM disciplines but also loves theater, speech and debate. She is Team Captain for her school’s forensics team and had the opportunity to compete nationally last year. Ishwari has participated in a number of theater productions and also volunteers with the Kalamazoo Civic Theater Penguin Project to help mentally and physically challenged students enjoy the performing arts. A trusted voice of her peers, Ishwari was chosen to be a part of the Superintendent’s Student Advisory Board for her entire district. She looks forward to taking her talents to Providence, RI this summer where she will participate in a program at Brown University.
“Ishwari impressed us all with not only her incredible academics and clear track record of leadership, but also her maturity and great sense of humor,” said Aditi Adhikari, JIF ‘14 and member of the Summer Scholar Selection Committee. “This young woman is destined to leave her mark in every community she joins, from her school to the broader STEM community. Joyce Ivy is humbled to be one of those communities in Ishwari’s journey, and we can’t wait to see how she goes on to change the world.”
“Throughout my life I have always tried to stray away from the assumptions made about me at first glance. I want to find what truly ignites that spark inside me,” said Ishwari Bhatt, JIF ‘23. “For me this comes from performing on stage and taking on the role of a new character. Thanks to Joyce Ivy, I have the opportunity to further my interests and learn from professors I look up to. I am honored and so grateful to be awarded this alumnae scholarship and hope to one day pass it on to the next generation of young women trying to further their own passions and find that spark.”
The 2023 Summer Scholars will be honored during the eighteenth annual Summer Scholars Gala on May 20, taking place in Lathrup Village, Michigan. The Gala will feature an address by the 2023 Joyce Ivy Foundation Leader of the Year, Dr. Jennifer Carlson, 2022 MacArthur Fellow and Associate Professor of Sociology and of Government and Public Policy at the University of Arizona. The Foundation will also honor two Woman of Impact award recipients: Dr. Sydney McKinney and Dr. Sally Nuamah.
About The Joyce Ivy Foundation
The Joyce Ivy Foundation seeks to provide exposure, encouragement, and financial assistance to young women who have the academic, intellectual, and leadership potential to attend the nation’s most selective institutions of higher education. Funding for the Joyce Ivy Foundation is provided by individuals, other foundations, and corporations. Since its founding in 2006, the Foundation has named 1136 students from Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, and South Dakota as Joyce Ivy Scholars, providing scholarships for them to attend summer educational programs at partner college summer programs, and providing or leveraging $6 million in scholarship funding. For more information, please visit www.joyceivyfoundation.org or contact the Joyce Ivy Foundation at info@joyceivyfoundation.org or (734) 661-0229.
