The 2025 recipients of the Emily Asli Kandemir Scholarship are Lexi Paton (7th grade) and Laniyah Miles (8th grade). This summer, Lexi will be learning Spanish, and Laniyah will be learning Japanese. Congratulations to both students on this incredible opportunity!
This year, 25 applicants, both seventh and eighth graders, applied for the scholarship and submitted a hand-written essay for consideration. Completed applications are then submitted to a scholarship committee at Concordia Language Villages. The scholarship committee selects a student to receive full tuition for the two-week language immersion camp of their choice.
The scholarship was named in honor of Emily Kandemir, a 7th-grade Park student, who was tragically killed in a traffic accident in July 2003. Emily was a French student, and her delightful personality and love of language brightened every room she entered. Her family established a scholarship to Concordia Language Villages in Moorhead, Minnesota to honor her memory. Since 2004, two fortunate Park students have been awarded the Emily Asli Kandemir Scholarship each year, giving them the opportunity to attend a two-week immersion camp in the language of their choice.
While serving on a D102 strategic planning committee, Ms. Boyde met Barbara Kandemir, Emily's mother. They connected over their shared love of France and the French language and got to know each other before Emily attended Park. After the accident, the Kandemirs asked if Ms. Boyde would be willing to chair and coordinate the scholarship, a request she gladly accepted. It has been her privilege to honor Emily’s memory every year, with the exception of 2020.
A memorial plaque in the hallway outside of the LRC honors some of the earliest scholarship recipients, and another plaque dedicated to Emily can be found outside the main office.