33 UT Dallas students join Terry Scholars program

This fall, the University of Texas Dallas included 33 new students into its Terry Scholars Program, which awards a sum that will exceed $3 million this year.

There are 23 freshmen in the group of students; four are National Merit Commended Scholars, and two others are salutatorians. One student is part of the Great Britain national baseball team, while another served as a translator for a TED Talk, making the Russian presentation available in English so that it could reach more listeners. Ten of the students are transfer scholarship recipients.

This is one of the biggest and most competitive classes involved in the program. There are 139 students in the Terry Scholars Program and in UT Dallas. Together, they will receive over $3 million in funding for 2016-17 alone.

“The Terry Foundation’s financial commitment extends the opportunity of higher education to outstanding Texas students who would not otherwise be able to attend college without incurring large debt,” Blythe Torres, the program’s director, said.

Since the program started in 2006, the Terry Foundation has awarded $10 million to 240 students at UT Dallas. This is a much larger group of students than the first 11 students who received scholarships in 2006. The ongoing growth of the program is a testimony to its success.

“At UT Dallas, we ensure the Terry Scholars Program facilitates the scholars’ intellectual, cultural and personal growth outside of the classroom as well,” Torres said. “Scholars participate in the Honors College events in the Dallas Arts District and in retreats, excursions and social gatherings.”