Sixty high-achieving community college students from across the country will receive the prestigious 2026 Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship to help them complete their bachelor’s degree at a four-year institution.
Among them is Ashley Cozayatl, a first-generation Peruvian and Mexican-American student who balanced attending SUNY Westchester Community College‘s Honors College while working two jobs. SUNY Westchester’s low tuition and the support of the Honors College are what drew her to the college. This fall, she will attend New York University on a pre-law track, with plans to later attend law school and pursue a career in law.
Katherine Jovel, who is majoring in business, also plans to go to law school after earning her bachelor’s degree in economics. The student at UCNJ Union College of Union County, NJ aims to focus on education or immigration law to develop policy and educational support systems for marginalized communities.
Like Cozayatl, Jovel is a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society — an affiliated council of the American Association of Community Colleges — and the college’s Honors Program. She also tutored in the college’s Academic Learning Center and participated in the Princeton Transfer Scholars Initiative in 2025.
And then there’s Daniel Emdin, who typifies the Jack Kent Cooke scholar in his excelling in academics, leadership and other accomplishments. He recently graduated the Community College of Philadelphia (CCP), following in the steps of his brother Daniel, who received the honor in 2024. Emdin received his associate degree in chemistry this month, racking up numerous chemistry and science awards along the way.
Emdin was also active in student and academic organizations, serving as president of the college’s Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society chapter and vice president and co-founder of CCP’s chapter of the American Chemical Society. He also worked as a student researcher in the biotech program at CCP.
It was Emdin’s leadership and commitment as president of the Student Government Association that caught the eye of CCP President Alycia Marshall.
“His impact on CCP is not momentary, it is lasting, and it will continue to shape CCP long after he embarks on the next chapter of his journey,” she said in a release.
Emdin also gave back to his community by volunteering with the Institute of Community Engagement and Civic Leadership and mentoring with Project Career Launch Mentorship Program, which helps to prepare high school students on the autism spectrum navigate college.
Emdin is still weighing his options on where he will attend this fall, but he has a pretty good idea what he wants to do.
“My intended major is to continue majoring in chemistry and public health so I can continue to integrate my love for sciences for my passion in public policy work,” he said.
The Jack Kent College Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship program provides last-dollar funding up to $55,000 per year to complete a baccalaureate, plus personalized advising and access to a network of more than 3,900 Cooke scholars and alumni, which comes with opportunities for internships and more. More than 1,300 students applied this year for the scholarship, with evaluations based on academic achievement, perseverance and leadership.
This year’s scholars come from 23 states; California has 14 scholarship winners, followed by New York with nine, seven of whom are from community colleges in the City University of New York system. Florida has five scholars, with three from Miami Dade College. Illinois has four, with three students from the City Colleges of Chicago system.
