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CSF Scholar Amanda: High School Grad and Future Doctor

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A few weeks ago, CSF Scholar Amanda Tebbets celebrated her graduation from Bishop Brady High School with a drive-through ceremony. Graduates remained in their cars with their families, listening to the proceedings by car radio, drive-in movie style, until they were called up in groups of ten to walk onstage and receive their diplomas.

The drive-in graduation was the culmination of an unusual semester for Amanda, with Zoom classes and lots of independent work. Since Bishop Brady moved online in March, she missed out on prom and many other senior activities, only returning to school briefly before graduation to clean out her locker and pick up her yearbook.

Although the first weeks were hard, Amanda says the Covid-19 shutdown actually had some upsides, such as helping her develop study routines and hold herself accountable, rather than having school bells dictate her daily schedule. “It could be considered preparation for college. It’s harder to procrastinate now, even without reminders from teachers,” she shared.

Those skills will come in handy this fall when Amanda joins the Global Honors Program at Roberts Wesleyan College in Rochester, NY. There, she plans to major in biomedical science in preparation for medical school.

“Since I was eight, I always wanted to be a doctor,” Amanda told us. “I used to take care of my mom when she got migraines – that might have contributed.”


If I didn’t get that scholarship, I wouldn’t be able to go to Brady and be in that environment where they value learning. It’s just priceless.

-CSF Scholar Amanda

Her studies have always been important to Amanda, which is why she and her parents sought out a high school curriculum that would be challenging enough. After touring Bishop Brady, Amanda and her parents found out that using a CSF scholarship would make the family’s portion of tuition affordable, and they were sold.

“I really like the atmosphere,” Amanda said. “Other schools I visited weren’t necessarily as welcoming as Brady. I felt I was not going to be a number there.”

Over the past four years, Amanda made her mark. She was placed in honors classes, which she describes as “amazing.” She also played soccer and sang a solo in a production of Godspell. A National Honor Society member, she won an Oberlin Book Award last year. So it’s no surprise Amanda was selected by the school’s admissions department to give tours to prospective new students.

Reflecting on her successful high school years, Amanda is extremely grateful to the contributors who made it possible for her to go to Bishop Brady.

“Even though sometimes you don’t know or hear from the person the money goes to, they still really, really appreciate it and it really does change their lives,” she told us. “If I didn’t get that scholarship, I wouldn’t be able to go to Brady and be in that environment where they value learning. It’s just priceless.”

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