Class of 2018
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Dylan DeTrayHometown: Federal Way, Washington Dylan has a passion for public speaking and a love for leadership. During his time in high school, Dylan was the president of the Speech and Debate club as well as the Future Business Leaders of America chapter. He remained heavily involved in school leadership, and served as the Associated Student Body Club Commissioner during his senior year. At SCU, he quickly got involved in a professional business fraternity and became an analyst in the school's investing club, Phoenician Capital. Being a Student Ambassador in the Undergraduate Admission office has been one of Dylan's favorite parts about being at SCU. Working with a group of students that love Santa Clara so much makes waking up for work easy! Near the end of his freshman year, Dylan helped found Santa Clara Consulting - the first consulting group on campus - and hopes to build relationships with consulting firms around the Silicon Valley through it. Dylan considers himself blessed to be a part of the Johnson Scholars family. Bonding with them in class, on retreats and immersion trips, or during outings to Chipotle has helped them grow extremely close, and he cannot wait to spend another three years with such amazing people. |
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Marli DunnHometown: Avondale, Arizona Marli Dunn exemplified service, scholarship, and leadership throughout her high school career. She was involved in her high school’s Key Club chapter and tutoring club and could be found outside of school volunteering as a youth girls’ basketball coach. She was a member of the National Honor Society, participated in the Great Books program, was named a National Hispanic Scholar, and participated in an intense medical internship the summer between her junior and senior year. As a junior, Marli was vice president of her school’s chapter of Mu Alpha Theta, and she was president her senior year. She had the pleasure of being a member of student government, and was vice president of her senior class. |
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Owen HuelsbeckHometown: Tacoma, Washington Owen Huelsbeck is most passionate about learning, helping others be their best selves, and enjoying life. He has had the privilege of serving as senior class president and as member of the National Honor Society. He enjoyed tutoring his friends in AP physics and studying the subject independently. Nicknamed “Mr. Spirit,” Owen loved supporting his sports teams in high-spirited ways. As an athlete, he has been recognized locally for his water polo talents. Outside school, Owen co-founded the Pierce County Youth Advisory Council, a local nonprofit aimed at eliminating youth homelessness in Pierce County, Washington. He has been hired as a speaker at conferences, and has served as faculty at a youth leadership school. Owen has a variety of interests ranging from politics to physics to art and design, and he plans on studying anything and everything that catches his interest. |
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Hannah KortbawiHometown: Seattle, Washington Hannah Kortbawi was a founding leader of the Ethics Bowl club at Lakeside School. Participating in the Washington State High School Ethics Bowl, her team won the Spirit of Ethics Award. Hannah ran cross country and track throughout high school, managed her school’s swim team, and was captain of the cross country team her senior year. She was also a member of the Lakeside Leadership Institute, a program through her school that partnered with NOLS, a wilderness and outdoor education school, to help students build leadership skills. Through this program she helped develop a project to increase openness and trust in her school’s community. She has been a Girl Scout since age seven and was a founding member of her school’s Women in STEM club. Her community service includes work at the University of Washington Medical Center and through the Washington Trails Association. She was on her school’s yearbook staff, mentored freshmen through their transition into high school, and tutored French. |
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Amy LutfiHometown: Yorba Linda, California Amy Lutfi has demonstrated outstanding leadership, academic excellence, and a commitment to serving others in her community. At Rosary High School, she was elected class president, class secretary, and Associated Student Body executive treasurer and was a founding member of the Peer Assistance Leadership and Make-A-Wish clubs. She was also involved in Campus Ministry, served on the Youth Leadership Board of the Interfaith Youth Council of Orange County, and captained the Mock Trial team. Amy’s philanthropic activities included participation in the National Charity League for six years, serving as class vice president and fashion show marketing liaison, and volunteering for Meals on Wheels, Ronald McDonald House, and the Yorba Linda Library. In addition, she was a member of the National Honor Society and the Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica and was recognized as a scholar-athlete in both track and soccer. Amy also received the Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony Award for Social Justice and the American Youth Foundation “I Dare You” Leadership Award. |
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Karen MacHometown: San Jose, California In high school, Karen was highly involved in science research, using facilities at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center to optimize gold nanorods for cancer treatment. To spread her love of science and learning to others, she also worked with local elementary schools to initiate academic outreach programs, and was recognized by Optimist International and the California Legislature Assembly for leadership and community outreach in the San Jose community. In high school, she served as the captain of the Varsity Cross Country & Track teams, and continues to compete as a NCAA D1 runner at Santa Clara. Along with being on the leadership board of the Chemistry Club and Pre-Dental Society, she remains active on campus by conducting nanoparticle toxicity studies in an undergraduate chemistry lab. In her spare time, she also helps provide oral health screenings at local elementary schools. |
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Harshi MogallapalliHometown: Brookfield, Wisconsin Throughout high school Harshitha put a lot of effort into music and athletics. She started learning Indian classical vocal music and piano from a young age. Going into high school, her emphasis shifted towards focusing her talents to help the community and hence founded a non profit to work with inner city students and build a community through music. Harshitha was also a part of the National Honors Society and president of Key Club which also helped her make a wider impact on her community. As a freshmen at SCU she joined Intandesh, the South Asian student society, and served as the freshmen representative. To continue serving the community, Harshitha joined Food Recovery Network and took a position to be Program Director for the Santa Clara Community Action Program. The summer after her freshmen year she started working in Dr. Leilani Miller's biology lab to delve deeper into her interest in science and gain experience in a lab. |
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Erika SasakiHometown: Kirkland, Washington Erika Sasaki served as senior class officer for Overlake School’s Associated Student Body. She founded and led a service-based club on campus called Books for Literacy that worked closely with the nationwide organization First Book. In her sophomore year, she was chosen to participate with 19 other students in a global service trip to Pailin, Cambodia, where she taught classes to students in grades K–6 at Overlake Pailin. There she attained a more worldly perspective and attributes the trip to shaping who she is today. Erika was also on the Varsity Tennis team and played first chair clarinet in the school concert band. In addition, she has attended the Seattle Japanese School since preschool and absolutely loves Japan and its culture. She has won several worldwide awards for her Japanese Calligraphy, which she has been practicing since the second grade. Erika volunteered regularly at the Seattle Children’s Hospital and strongly values community service. |
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Taylor TagawaHometown: Honolulu, Hawaii Taylor graduated from `Iolani School as co-Valedictorian of her class. Taylor earned several academic distinctions during high school, including Top Student in Physics, National Latin Exam gold medalist, National AP Scholar, and National Merit Finalist. Taylor was also a state-level competitor on the `Iolani Economics Challenge Team. A dancer since age 3, Taylor has studied Ballet, Jazz, Contemporary, and Hula. She participated in school productions as a dancer, student choreographer, and director. Taylor was also a varsity cheerleader and named a UCA All-American Cheerleader. She served her community as a volunteer tutor and as President of the Raiders for Wounded Warriors cub, where Taylor worked to aid current and former military service members. At Santa Clara, Taylor has performed hula with Ka Mana`o O Hawai`i and hopes to appear in upcoming dance productions. She is immensely grateful for the opportunity to attend SCU as a Johnson Scholar and has found great friends among her fellow Johnson Scholars. Taylor's favorite things in life include Harry Potter, Korean food, and her two cats. In her spare time, Taylor enjoys practicing yoga, listening to music, and managing her stock portfolio. |
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Hannah WarneckeHometown: Conifer, Colorado Hannah enjoys seeking out adventures big and small. She has a passion for science, and in addition to taking many AP classes in high school, she spent time at an outdoor camp teaching science to middle school students. She has always had a love for the outdoors, and has been able to participate in many Into the Wild trips during her first year at SCU. She spent over 600 hours volunteering while in high school, and loves going with the St. Vincent de Paul group on campus to feed the homeless community of San Jose. She also enjoys going to the many lectures put on by different student organizations around campus where she enjoys getting to know the amazing professors personally and find out what they are passionate about. She also enjoys bonding with friends at SCU honors program events. She looks forward to taking advantage of SCU’s study abroad opportunities in the coming years, and she is grateful for the community of Johnson Scholars and the support they gave her as she made the transition to life at SCU. |
The class of 2018 Johnson Scholars with two boys and 8 girls smiling in a group photo.