Four 2025 Summer Scholars Receive Special Awards

The Joyce Ivy Foundation recently announced the names of 81 young women selected as 2025 Summer Scholars to receive scholarships for pre-college study at leading U.S. colleges and universities. Among these talented students, four have been honored with named scholarship awards. This year’s winners are Afrin Ahmed of Warren, Michigan; Josephine Hetherington of Royal Oak, Michigan; Ayesha Khan of Muncie, Indiana; and Emily Nguyen of O’Fallon, Missouri. 

“Through the generosity of loyal donors and supporters, we have been able to support more Scholars each year,” said Brittany Knight, Executive Director. “These awards are so meaningful because they not only create financial opportunities for our Scholars, but also tremendous mentorship experiences”. 

The Joyce Ivy Foundation is pleased to introduce these exceptional students and to share more about their awards:

Afrin Ahmed, 2025 Mary Vandewiele Leadership Award

Afrin is a junior at Warren Mott High School & Macomb Mathematics Science Technology Center. A self-motivated STEM superstar, she devotes significant time to serving as captain of the robotics team, mentoring other students, and research. She is most excited about a career at the intersection of technology and health. Afrin will most likely attend Johns Hopkins this summer. 

About the award: Mary Vandewiele, a Metro Detroit entrepreneur and advocate for women and their leadership development, established the Mary Vandewiele Leadership Award in 2013, and it is awarded annually to a Joyce Ivy Foundation Summer Scholar from Michigan who demonstrates leadership, academic promise, and exceptional commitment to her school and home communities. 

Josephine Hetherington, 2025 First Five Scholar Award

Josi is a junior at International Academy, where she excels academically in a rigorous IB curriculum. She is a passionate contributor not only to her school community but also to the broader Royal Oak community.  She co-founded Bee City, which works to protect pollinators. She is also a student advisor for the Environmental Advisory Board of Royal Oak, president of her school’s Key Club, and a member of Model UN. This summer, Josi will attend Harvard Secondary School.

About the award: The First Five Scholarship was established in 2024 by Anne Hiller, a former Director and founding member of the Joyce Ivy Foundation who helped select the first cohorts of Summer Scholars. This award is selected annually by a Joyce Ivy Foundation alumnae from the first five cohorts (2006-2010) and recognizes a Joyce Ivy Scholar who forges the pathway for others and who will continue the legacy of academic and citizenship excellence that has made our university partnerships, alumnae network, and sisterhood successful.  With the support of the Foundation, the earliest Summer Scholar alumnae proved the Joyce Ivy Foundation’s working model  and demonstrated academic and citizenship excellence to the institutions they attended for summer programs, college, and graduate school. Now into professional careers, alumnae pay it forward through volunteer and financial support that enables continued excellence for current Scholars.

Ayesha Khan, 2025 Steve Carlson Perseverance Award

Ayesha is a junior at The Indiana Academy for Science, Mathematics, and Humanities. She was chosen as one of just fifteen to attend the Indiana Academy as a sophomore, a noteworthy achievement. Her greatest interests lie in STEM fields; she is involved in Girls in Tech at the national level and is a research and teaching assistant. Ayesha is passionate about breaking down stereotypes surrounding females in STEM. She looks forward to attending UC Berkeley’s Computer Science Academy this summer. 

About the award: The Steve Carlson Perseverance Scholarship was established in 2024 to annually cover all expenses related to summer program participation (tuition, room, board, travel and supplies) for one outstanding Summer Scholar hailing from the state of Indiana and ideally attending the Indiana Academy for Science, Mathematics and Humanities. This Scholar displays academic excellence, a desire and drive to explore opportunities beyond her current circumstances, a strong belief in the transformational power of educational experiences, and perseverance in the face of any type of challenge or adversity. These are all qualities that Steve Carlson, for whom this scholarship was lovingly endowed by his daughter Dr. Jennifer Carlson (Indiana Academy ‘00), both possessed and valued.

Emily Nguyen, 2025 Alumnae Scholarship Award

A junior at Liberty High School, Emily is an enthusiastic scholar who enjoys learning and civic engagement. She is the Editor-in-Chief of Civitas Examiner, a student-led newspaper in the St. Louis Area. She is also on the leadership team for the St. Charles County Democratic Central Committee, founder of Vote WSD, a non-partisan student-run candidate forum, and president of her school’s Model United Nations. Impressively, Emily also manages to participate in the Drama Club/Theatre and Scholar Bowl at her school. Emily will be joining the Yale Young Global Scholars program this Summer.

About the award: 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 1284 Summer Scholars, including eighty-one members of the 2025 cohort.

The 2025 Summer scholars will be honored at the 20th annual Summer Scholars Send Off on May 17, 2025 at 6 pm in Lathrup Village, Michigan. The celebration will feature remarks from the Joyce Ivy Foundation Leader of the Year, Tina V. John, Executive Legal Counsel and Secretary of Rocket Companies, Inc. The event will also honor two Woman of Impact award recipients, venture capital executive Alexis Alston and NASA engineer Clare Luckey. Individual tickets and sponsorship opportunities are both available online, and those interested can contact Brittany Knight for further information.