At St. David’s Foundation, our work is guided by the mission to advance health equity across Central Texas. Achieving this vision depends on cultivating a thriving, diverse, and community-rooted healthcare workforce that can meet the evolving needs of our region. A strong pipeline of healthcare professionals not only improves health outcomes but also opens doors to stable, meaningful employment and long-term economic stability.
The St. David’s Neal Kocurek Scholarship Program provides financial and emotional support for students pursuing higher education in healthcare. The program creates pathways for students to pursue healthcare careers in an in-demand field with long-term financial security, a key driver of positive health outcomes. While empowering these deserving students, the scholarship program also strengthens the health and wellness of our entire community by cultivating a workforce of qualified, compassionate, and diverse healthcare professionals.
As the largest health care scholarship program in Texas, the Neal Kocurek Scholarship Program offers more than 40 graduating high school seniors in Central Texas this transformative scholarship to advance their healthcare education each year. In the 20 years since the program’s inception, more than 800 students from Bastrop, Caldwell, Hays, Travis, and Williamson counties have received the award. Scholars are selected based on academic merit, personal determination, and financial need.
Many of our scholarship recipients are first-generation college students therefore the program goes beyond solely providing financial support and aims to remove further barriers by matching our students with healthcare professionals who serve as mentors throughout the four-year program. These professionals provide critical guidance and encouragement. Students are also given access to free mental health counseling, tutoring, and a community of other scholars. The holistic nature of the program ensures each scholar has the tools and support to achieve their dream.
Of the students that are selected each year, one scholar is awarded the Alfred A. King Chairman’s Award. Selected by the scholarship committee, the award is presented to the individual who best exemplifies outstanding educational values, strong community awareness, and a deep commitment to civic stewardship.
This year, the committee selected Emily Cluck to receive the Alfred A. King Chairman’s Award. Emily, a Dripping Springs High School graduate, has a deep passion for giving back to society and believes that joining the healthcare field will allow her to better serve her community. Emily’s story begins with the impact that healthcare professionals had on her life – she was born eight weeks early and endured 24-day NICU stay. “I have always known I wanted to be a doctor, but my rocky start to life helped solidify the path to neonatology,” said Emily. “It is my dream to help babies like me because without the help of talented neonatologists, I would not be thriving like I am today.”
The 2025 Neal Kocurek recipients will now join a distinguished community of scholars who will encourage and inspire each other as they progress through their college education and beyond.
Please join us in congratulating the recipients of the 2025 Neal Kocurek Scholarship. We are proud to support each of these scholars as they embark on their educational journey, and we look forward to celebrating their future success.
For more information, visit our Neal Kocurek Scholarship page. The Foundation will begin accepting applications for the 2026 Scholarship in November. High school seniors from Bastrop, Caldwell, Hays, Travis, and Williamson counties, who are pursuing healthcare careers, are invited to apply. Subscribe to our newsletter to be notified when applications go live.
From Bastrop County:
Madden Denton
Cedar Creek High School
Faith Frank
Cedar Creek High School
Daeylin Gonzalez
Cedar Creek High School
From Hays County:
Emily Cluck
Dripping Springs High School
Faith Guerrero
Lehman High School
Halynn Hernandez
San Marcos High School
Andres Munoz
Moe and Gene Johnson High School
Katie Newman
Dripping Springs High School
Chloe Swindle
Wimberley High School
From Travis County:
Enoma Agbonwaneten
Pflugerville High School
Nene Grace Bello
Brentwood Christian School
Ginny Benitez-Perez
Del Valle High School
Ashley Camacho-Benitez
Del Valle High School
Thao Duong
Harmony Science Academy Pflugerville
Adam Duong
Pflugerville High School
Kayla Frederick
Manor New Technology High School
Diya Govin
Weiss High School
Tiffany Jiang
Pflugerville High School
Fatima Zahra Ladnany
Travis Early College High School
Rahila Masood
Manor Senior High School
Chris Mathan Kurian
Stony Point High School
Jocelyn Mendoza Monsivais
Del Valle High School
Jennifer Monroy Granados
Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders
Chidinma Nwankwo
Manor New Technology High School
Chisom Okoye
Weiss High School
Deborah Okpara
Manor Early College High School
Sarai Ramos
Northeast Early College High School
Arosh Rasool
Navarro Early College High School
Phylicia Ren
Westwood High School
Emma Roth
Roth Classical Academy Homeschool
Nohamin Tafesse
John B Connally High School
From Williamson County:
Audrey Capers
Valor North Austin
Kayla Hehenberger
Rouse High School
Leslie Hernandez
Chip Richarte High School
Murat Kasap
Westwood High School
Zoe Kriskey
Georgetown High School
Isis Maldonado Nino
East View High School
Amber Morales
Hutto High School
Zainab Naqibullah
East View High School
Brianna Peralez
Stony Point High School
Lola Powell
Georgetown High School
Sana Rahim
East View High School
Josephine Rentas
Hutto High School
Jenna Richie
Tom Glenn High School
Isabella Thomas
McNeil High School