Miller receives LPGA scholarship
It doesn’t take a stroke of genius to realize that Mikayla Miller is a winner. The 2015 Copperas Cove High School graduate was ranked third in her graduating class of 541 students with a 4.759 GPA. She was not only an academic all-star, but also a star on the golf course winning or placing in tournament after tournament. But now, Miller is getting national attention for her abilities both in the classroom and as a golfer.
Miller is one of only 20 students nationally to receive the prestigious Marilynn Smith Scholarship awarded through the Ladies Professional Golf Association. The $5,000 scholarship was established in 1999 by LPGA co-founder and 2-time major winner Smith who was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2006.
Scholarship candidates must have played for their high school golf team or through their community and must be playing golf at an accredited college or university in the United States. The scholarship committee reviews high school involvement in clubs, volunteer service organizations and academics. Miller was named the Most Valuable Player on the Cove High School golf team in 2013 and 2014.
Miller was awarded a $96,000 scholarship to attend Southwestern University in Georgetown and play on the women’s golf team. Costing nearly $24,000 a semester, the school will cost Miller twice that before graduation. The LPGA $5,000 scholarship will definitely come in handy.
“I chose Southwestern University because of the prestigious academic programs and educational opportunities the school could provide me. SU has an incredible Paideia program, which fosters collaboration and connectivity between academic departments and the community,” Miller said. “This program was a huge pull factor for me. I love that the school offers a program that allows students to connect with one another as well as professors in order to take classroom learning beyond the lecture hall and into the real world.”
Miller said she also chose Southwestern because of her dream to study abroad, another item on Miller’s list of goals. Southwestern University offers the opportunity to spend a semester learning in a foreign country and still remain a part of the school’s golf team. Miller played in her first collegiate tournament in mid-September and placed 2nd on her team and 18th overall with a score of 85-77-162. Southwestern finished 5th overall as a team 334-313- 647.
Miller is majoring in pre-dentistry and hopes to return to Copperas Cove as a dentist in the community she said always supported her in her effort to achieve her goals. To date, the college freshman golfer has garnered $172,000 in college scholarships.