2023 Merit Scholarship Winners

AAFSW is pleased to announce the 2023 winners of our merit scholarships! You can read the bios of the winners below. Congratulations to these stellar students!

AAFSW’s Merit Scholarships and Judy Felt Memorial Volunteerism Scholarship

Andrew Peterson: We’ll probably never meet one another, but if we did, you’d probably see me curled up under a tree with a huge fantasy novel. I’m finishing my senior year of undergraduate education at Brigham Young University this year with a major in computer science. I love learning about the way that things in the world work and why they work the way they do. I feel blessed to have an amazing family with whom I got to grow up in South Africa, Botswana, the Dominican Republic, and the Washington DC area.

AAFSW’s Twice Exceptional Merit Scholarship

Charlie Everest Vachowski: Charlie Vachowski (they/them) is headed to Simmons University in Boston to study pre-medicine. As an out-and-proud queer and disabled person, they plan to dedicate their life to the fight against HIV/AIDS and improving access to healthcare in the United States. They plan to use the scholarship money to pay for their tuition and books.

• Respectful of the family and the nominee’s preferences, and at their request, AAFSW updated the name from Charlotte to Charlie. AAFSW is committed to the State Department’s DEIA pledge

Best Essay Scholarship

Charles Hetletvedt: I am currently 17 and have lived in 5 countries, The United States, The Netherlands, Togo, The Czech Republic, and Tunisia. My main interests and hobbies include Rock Climbing, Skateboarding, Cross Country, Art, and Music Production. I intend to study Product Design at Western Michigan University with a possible minor in Art Education.

AAFSW’s Twice Exceptional Merit Scholarship

Terra Eve Rogstad

AAFSW’s Merit Scholarships

Misheel Karen Jaeger: Misheel Jaeger was born in Madison, Wisconsin but raised all over the world, having lived in a single place for no longer than three years. She lived in the US, Austria, China, Mongolia, and Germany over her lifetime. Misheel graduated from High School at 18 years old in the US and will go on to continue her education at George Mason University. She hopes to pursue a degree in English or subjects surrounding it such as Writing and Rhetoric as well as Professional and Technical Writing. Misheel hopes to continue her travels as an adult and maintain her hobbies of reading, knitting, and swimming.