Congratulations to Braylan Rice ’25, who was awarded the Joseph Adams Senior Scholarship from the National Hispanic Honor Society. Braylan was selected as the senior candidate for Steward’s Hispanic Honor Society chapter due to his impressive GPA, excellence in Spanish studies, and commitment to community service. The scholarship will be used to support Braylan’s college education. He is one of only 12 students chosen out of 3,000 applicants across the country.

The application process was extensive and required a video submission and an essay.  

“I focused most of my paper and video on political advocacy for marginalized groups, and how I plan on following a career in law or public policy,” said Braylan, who hopes to work for the U.S. Embassy in a foreign Latin American country and “connect with the millions of Spanish-speaking global citizens.”

Braylan was studying when he received a notification that started with the word “Felicitaciones.” He immediately texted his family and best friend. “I forwarded the email to [World Languages Teacher] Señora Marina Escámez Ballesta and thanked her for believing in me and for making my application the strongest it could’ve been.” 

Braylan has studied Spanish for seven years. “What I most enjoy about the language is the community aspect that is incorporated into it,” he shared. “I find it beautiful how food, dance, expression, and art are connected to the Spanish language.”

In his free time, Braylan volunteers with Recognizing Children's Gifts Behavioral Health Network, a Richmond organization that promotes the development of individuals with special needs. After researching Applied Behavior Analysis counseling, Braylan “realized how much patience and love are needed to work with adolescents who have autism. I helped create art activities for the clientele and helped children with autism communicate with each other.”

Of the Joseph Adams Senior Scholarship, Brayland said, “I am proud to represent my family and my school. The feeling that my hard work in trying to obtain biliteracy will be supported financially in college is an incredible motivation to remind me that I have support to take on challenges in the future.”