Photo by Edwin Perez ‘18| Griffin Fletcher ’18 poses for a photo with letters of Flinn scholarship in his hand. Fletcher won the Flinn scholarship award which awards a student a scholarship to any AZ university.

By Jack Davis ’19

THE ROUNDUP
Every year, the Flinn Scholarship is awarded to 20 Arizona high school seniors.

Benefits of the merit-based award include fully paid tuition at an Arizona public university, along with other perks such as study abroad programs and internships.

This year, Brophy senior Griffin Fletcher ’18 was awarded the scholarship. He chose taking the Flinn scholarship over pursuing his studies at the University of Virginia or remaining on the waitlists at Stanford, Harvard and Columbia.

Jack Hepsen ’18 praised Fletcher’s accomplishment.

“[Fletcher] is one incredible kid who absolutely deserved the prestigious award,” he said.

Fletcher said that he chose the Flinn because of the boundless opportunities, the community of scholars, the alumni network as well as the internship.

Fletcher said that he was ecstatic after winning the award.

“After I got off the phone with Anne Lassen, the program’s coordinator, I started running in circles around the kitchen,” he said. “I had this big cheesy grin on my face for the rest of the week.”

Fletcher said that the application process is similar to most colleges’.
“I had to ask teachers for recommendation letters, list the activities I’m involved in, and write a few essays and short answer questions,” Fletcher said. “In late December, the foundation picks semifinalists to interview. A few weeks later, they ask 40 individuals to come back for a finalist interview. Finally, they select a class of 20 scholars.”

John Ferrara ’18, friend of Fletcher’s, said that he had no doubt Fletcher would win the scholarship.

“I had no doubt Griffin was going to get Flinn,” Ferrara said. “He has excelled in what he is involved with and persevered through true challenges. I was so excited for him because he was able to see his hard work pay off.”

Ferrara said that Fletcher has helped him grow as a person over their time as friends.

“[Fletcher] is an incredible guy who has helped me grow as a person in so many ways, ranging from music tastes to philosophical ideas,” he said. “He is one of those guys that betters everyone he meets. [Fletcher] is like a brother to me and I am blessed to have him in my life.”

Fletcher and Ferrara plan to room with each other at ASU Barrett.

“I am excited to keep close to [Fletcher] as a roommate and see each other grow as individuals, while at the same time keep each other true to ourselves,” Ferrara said. “I know that he is going to do big things in college, so I cannot wait to see him excel.”

Fletcher said that he will pursue a B.S.E./M.S. in Mechanical Engineering.
“ASU has quite a few 4 + 1 degree programs that allow students to be awarded both a  bachelor’s and a master’s degree in four to five years,” he said.
“I’d love to continue acting,” Fletcher added. “It’s difficult to balance a degree as time consuming as engineering with theatre; I just can’t see myself giving it up.”