Greensboro Day School News Alert: Magod, Merritt Win Bill Lee Scholarships

Four Greensboro high school students, including GDS seniors Ben Magod and Gabrielle Merritt, were awarded the Bill Lee Scholarship during the 37th annual TIMCO Invitational presented by NewBridge Bank. The Greensboro Sports Council awards the $2,000 scholarships during this annual high school basketball tournament.

Magod is a captian of the boys’ basketball team. He carries a 4.85 GPA and is considering continuing his education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Duke University, Bucknell University or Middlebury College. He plans to pursue a degree in either biology or medicine. He qualified for the National Merit Scholarship program in 2012 and earned placement on the Head’s List in each of the last three years. He was named to the National Honor Society in 2011 and received an outstanding achievement award for AP English, United States history, and advanced biology for the 2011-12 school year. He is a youth elder at First Presbyterian Church and has participated in Mission trips to Heifer International Ranch, Belize and Atlanta.

Merritt carries a 5.0 GPA and is considering a career as an anesthesiologist or a biomedical engineer after attending college at either Davidson College, Wake Forest University, Vanderbilt University or the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She earned placement on the Head’s List in each of the last three years. She was named to the National Honor Society and the Cum Laude Society last year. In addition to basketball, Merritt is a decorated cross country runner and a co-captain of the soccer team. She participates in youth leadership Greensboro and volunteers at Alamance Medical Center as well as Mary’s House, a ministry that provides transitional housing for women in recovery from substance abuse.

Bill Lee was a Greensboro native and resident who was a major supporter of local sports. He was deeply involved with Greensboro’s minor league baseball efforts, basketball and golf. The Bill Lee Memorial Scholarship was established by the Greensboro Sports Council following Lee’s death in 2001. Recipients are nominated by the schools participating in the TIMCO Invitational each year.

Four student-athletes receive a scholarship each year. Winners are the most qualified applicants regardless of which participating school they represent or whether they are male or female. All eight participating schools nominated athletes for this honor. Each nomination is considered with the following criteria: 40% academic, 40% athletic and 20% civic.