Cy-Fair FCU awards high school students $11,000 in scholarships

Representatives from Cy-Fair Federal Credit Union award scholarships to local high school students.

Cy-Fair Federal Credit Union in Houston, Texas, has announced the winners for this year’s scholarship program, awarding $11,000 in higher education scholarships to six Cypress-Fairbanks ISD high school seniors. One of the scholarships includes the $3,500 Pattie R. Miller Memorial Scholarship, a full-year paid tuition at Lone Star College. This year’s recipient is Brayan Gutierrez of Cy-Falls High School.

“I have been happy to have a lot of ‘firsts’ in my life, and with this scholarship, I am closer to being the first in my family to attend a four-year college,” said Gutierrez. “I plan to transfer from Lonestar to the University of Houston to pursue a degree in chemical engineering.”

Cy-Fair FCU awarded the $1,500 Bilingual Spanish/English Scholarship to Fernanda Varela of Cy-Springs High School. To qualify, applicants had to be enrolled in English as a second language or a New America College English Acquisition class and submit their application essays in English and Spanish.

"Coming from a single-parent household, the Cy-Fair FCU Bilingual Spanish Scholarship puts me closer to continuing my education at the University of Houston,” said Valera. “Being recognized for what I have accomplished so far with my education is very special to me.”

The credit union awarded Jessica Omokheyeke of Cypress Woods High School the $1,500 Membership Scholarship, reserved for an outstanding student who is a Cy-Fair FCU member or has an immediate family member with an account at the credit union.

“The Cy-Fair FCU Membership Scholarship is a huge honor as it recognizes all the hard work I have put in not only my education but the community as well,” said Omokheyeke. “This has made me even more excited to continue my education at New York University.”

Cy-Fair FCU also awarded three high school seniors with the credit union’s Community Scholarship. In all, the $11,000 in scholarships represent Cy-Fair FCU’s commitment to the Cypress-Fairbanks ISD community and families seeking higher education opportunities for their students.

“These scholarships reflect our intent to help deserving, outstanding high school seniors reach their higher education goals as part of our overall mission to seek impactful ways to invest in our local community,” said Cameron Dickey, Cy-Fair FCU’s CEO and president. “These remarkable students are a testament to the exceptional Cypress-Fairbanks school community, and we know that they will go far in their education.”

Cy-Fair FCU began its scholarship program in 1992 and has now awarded financial assistance to 202 students totaling $207,000. The scholarship program is open to all Cypress-Fairbanks ISD and Waller ISD students, and funds may be used for tuition at any accredited college, junior college, or university.

The scholarship selection process began in March 2019 and is facilitated by an independent, all-volunteer committee comprised of community leaders. This year’s scholarship committee was tasked with scoring the submitted essays to help determine the recipients.

2019 Cy-Fair Credit Union Scholarship Program

Pattie R. Miller Memorial Scholarship
Brayan Gutierrez, Cy-Falls High School—Lone Star College full tuition and paid expenses up to $3,500

Bilingual Spanish/English Scholarship
Fernanda Varela, Cy-Springs High School—$1,500

Cy-Fair FCU Membership Scholarship
Jessica Omokheyeke, Cypress Woods High School—$1,500

Community Scholarships
Mark Mathews, Cypress Creek High School—$1,500
Christi Nguyen, Cypress Ridge High School—$1,500
Bishoy Hanna, Cy-Ranch High School—$1,500

About Cy-Fair Federal Credit Union
Cy-Fair Federal Credit Union (www.cyfairfcu.org) is a full-service credit union in southeast Texas. Originally founded in 1956 with 10 members to serve employees of the Cy-Fair Independent School District, Cy-Fair FCU now has more than 25,000 members and serves anyone who lives, works, worships, or attends school within Harris County and parts of Waller County.