Celebrating the 2025 Graduates of St. David’s Neal Kocurek Scholarship Program

This summer, St. David’s Foundation celebrated the Class of 2025 Neal Kocurek Scholars graduation with friends and family. The inspiring event honored those scholars who completed their degrees during the 2024-2025 academic year and highlighted their impressive achievements.    

The celebration also acknowledged the 20th anniversary of the Neal Kocurek Scholarship Program, underscoring its growth and impact throughout the years. Over the past 20 years, the Foundation has awarded 853 scholarships — totaling more than $26 million of support — to students pursuing healthcare careers. This fall, 45 new students will join the program alongside 215 active scholars. Beyond financial assistance, the program also provides mentorship, mental health support, and fosters a nurturing learning community for the students.    

“What sets this scholarship apart is the unwavering support from the Foundation’s Community Affairs team,” said Nancy Kha, a 2025 graduate from the Neal Kocurek Scholarship Program. “This incredible team works tirelessly to ensure scholars receive what they need, build strong relationships with each of us, and most importantly, makes sure no one is left behind. St. David’s Foundation gives resilient young adults the push they need to seize life’s opportunities.”   

From universities and colleges across Texas and beyond, this graduating class earned 44 bachelor’s degrees, eight master’s degrees, and 19 doctorate degrees. This cohort will be pursuing careers in a diverse range of health professions, including biotech, applied psychology, marriage and family therapy, neuroscience, and healthcare administration. Also, nine of our undergraduate scholars will now be entering graduate and doctorate programs. 

Graduates of the Neal Kocurek Scholarship Program will be tomorrow’s leaders in health, advancing the quality-of-care Texans can expect from their providers. This program reflects an investment in these students and the health and wellbeing of our Central Texas communities.

“We are very proud of the many successes achieved by these scholars throughout their educational journeys,” said President and CEO of St. David’s Foundation, Dr. Edward Burger. “We at St. David’s Foundation now have great expectations for these newly minted graduates and hope they will realize their full potential in enhancing and improving the health and wellbeing of individuals across our community.”   

For more information, visit the Neal Kocurek Scholarship page. The program 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.   

Please join us in congratulating the 2025 graduates of our Neal Kocurek Scholarship Program.  We are proud to have supported each of these scholars throughout their educational journey and wish them all the best in their future endeavors. 

Alexandra Alvarez
Doctor of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine 

Amelia Azadi
Bachelor of Science in Psychology & Bachelor of Arts in Spanish, University of Texas at Austin 

Ayesha Bhatti
Bachelor of Science in Human Development & Family Sciences, University of Texas at Austin 

Tiffiney Booe
Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Prairie View A&M University  

Sarah Brock
Bachelor of Science in Psychology, Stephen F. Austin State University  

Melanie Chavez
Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry, University of Texas at Austin  

Emily Cook
Bachelor of Science in Counseling and Addiction Recovery Sciences, Texas Tech University  

Giavanna Coppola
Doctor of Physical Therapy, Texas State University  

Quyen Dinh
Doctor of Pharmacy, University of Texas at Austin  

Thao Do
Doctor of Medicine, New York Institute of Technology

Ryme El Boukhani
Bachelor of Science in Nutrition, Texas A&M University   

Yemariamwork Engidaw
Doctor of Medicine, University of Texas Southwestern Medical School 

Karina Esteves-Albiter
Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience, Trinity University  

Mario Gallegos
Master of Public Health, New York University

Allesandre Glover
Master of Public Health, University of North Texas Health Science Center 

Alan Gomez-Espinoza
Bachelor of Science in Biology, University of Texas at Austin  

Kenadie Gordon
Bachelor of Science in Biology & Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, University of Texas Permian Basin  

Diana Guerrero
Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Concordia University Texas

Iris Ham
Doctor of Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center- El Paso  

Deena Ismail
Doctor of Medicine, University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston  

Riya Jeff
Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin 

Nancy Kha
Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, University of the Incarnate Word  

Muhammad Khan
Bachelor of Science in Public Health, University of Texas at Austin 

Moryah Kline
Bachelor of Science in Health Science Studies, Baylor University

Dhyasa Kumar
Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies, University of Texas at Dallas 

Danielle Lacasse
Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine

Aditi Lavani
Master of Physician Assistant Studies, South University – Austin

Jeanette Lee
Doctor of Nursing Practice Nurse Anesthesia, Baylor College of Medicine

Dwight Anthony Lising
Bachelor of Science in Nursing, University of Texas at Austin  

Nayelli Lopez
Bachelor of Science in Allied Health, Texas A&M University  

Brianna Luong
Bachelor of Science in Nursing, University of Texas at Austin 

Erica Masi
Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Texas A&M University Health Science Center 

Cameron Matocha
Doctor of Physical Therapy, Hardin- Simmons University 

Mariel Mayhew
Doctor of Physical Therapy, Baylor University  

William Mayhew
Doctor of Biomedical Sciences, University of North Texas Health Science Center  

Hannah McChesney
Master of Physician Assistant Studies, University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston 

Sadaf Naimzada
Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Sam Houston State University 

Saba Naiyer
Master of Physician Assistant Studies, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio 

Beni Nguyen
Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience, Rice University  

Emily Nguyen
Bachelor of Science in Psychology, University of Texas at Austin  

Mandy Nguyen
Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin   

Matthew Nguyen
Master of Molecular and Cell Biology, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center- Lubbock

Skye Nguyen
Bachelor of Science in Biology, Baylor University

Allee Nix
Doctor of Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center 

Jonathan Pavia
Doctor of Medicine, University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston  

Alejandra Perez Meza
Bachelor of Science in Biology, University of Texas at Austin  

Vamshi Pothireddy
Bachelor of Science in Biology Honors, University of Texas at Austin 

Gloria Remmert
Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Texas A&M University  

Jasmin Sanchez
Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Health Sciences, Texas State University   

Meredith Steczkowski
Doctor of Optometry, Southern College of Optometry   

Josef Stone
Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Texas State University

Ashley Tonn
Master of Social Work, University of Texas at Arlington 

Yessica Ulloa-Penaloza
Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences, Texas State University

Crystal Unegbu
Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology, Rice University

Emma Vorndran
Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry, University of Texas at Austin 

Nicole Vu
Bachelor of Science in Public Health, Texas A&M University

Daniel Xiong
Bachelor of Science in Biology, University of Texas at Austin  

Ellie Yates
Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry, University of Texas at Austin