Fifteen students from the University of Central Florida and four partnership colleges – Eastern Florida State College, Lake-Sumter State College, Seminole State College of Florida and Valencia College – were honored as Johnson Scholars in a February 22 ceremony on the UCF campus.

The students are the third class of Johnson Scholars, named in recognition of the scholarship program initiated by the Johnson Scholarship Foundation and geared toward DirectConnect to UCF students.

“Knowing someone is willing to invest in my academic career because they strongly believe that I will be successful one day is truly inspiring and motivational,” said recipient Daniel Salas, a UCF student who received the scholarship while attending Valencia College. “The Johnson Scholarship has assisted me greatly through a significant portion of my undergraduate career as I continue to prepare myself for medical school.”

The Johnson Scholarship Foundation is a national, private foundation with a mission to assist deserving people in achieving higher education and a belief in education as a means to help people succeed in life.