TRENTON, N.J., May 12, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Comcast NBCUniversal today announced that it has awarded $92,000 in scholarships for the 2016-17 school year to 83 New Jersey high school seniors as part of its annual Leaders and Achievers(®) Scholarship Program. The program, funded by the Comcast Foundation, is a one-time, $1,000 scholarship awarded to the best and brightest high school seniors for their community service, academic performance and leadership skills. Since 2001, more than $25 million has been awarded to nearly 25,000 high school seniors across the country as part of the Leaders and Achievers Program.

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"Our Leaders and Achievers Scholarship winners exemplify leadership and are committed to academic excellence and community service," said Charisse R. Lillie, Fellow and Vice President of Community Investment, Comcast Corporation and President, Comcast Foundation. "We are honored to recognize their achievements, and excited to support them as they continue their educational journeys."

Comcast, joined by New Jersey Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno, recognized the students at a special event held at the Trenton War Memorial today. The recipients each received a $1,000 scholarship and one student, Sophia Frank, a resident of Carteret and student at Carteret High School, was selected to receive a $10,000 Comcast Founders Scholarship - instituted in honor of Ralph J. Roberts, Founder and Chairman Emeritus of Comcast Corporation. After a prize drawing, 10 students also received Samsung Galaxy tablets for use at college.

"One common thread most successful people share is their strong commitment to getting involved and giving back to their communities. It is never too early to begin volunteering and starting an enriching, civic-minded path that will lead to great experiences all the while benefitting our state," said Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno. "It is clear the award recipients this year have gone above and beyond not only with their academics and extracurricular activities, but also with their compassion and altruism for others in their communities. I commend them for their great work and strongly encourage them to take what they have learned thus far in life and build upon it on whatever path they may choose. Let them continue to inspire others and lead by example."

The Comcast Leaders and Achievers Scholarship Program provides scholarships to students who strive to achieve their full potential, who are catalysts for positive change in their communities, who are involved in their schools, and who serve as models for their fellow students. The philosophy behind the program is to give young people every opportunity to prepare for the future and to engage them in their communities. The program also demonstrates the importance of civic involvement, and the value placed on civic involvement by the business community.

To learn more, please visit the Comcast Leaders and Achievers Facebook page.

About Comcast Corporation
Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA) is a global media and technology company with two primary businesses, Comcast Cable and NBCUniversal. Comcast Cable is one of the nation's largest video, high-speed Internet and phone providers to residential customers under the XFINITY brand and also provides these services to businesses. NBCUniversal operates news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures and Universal Parks and Resorts. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.

About the Comcast Foundation:
The Comcast Foundation was founded by Comcast Corporation in June 1999 to provide charitable support to qualified non-profit organizations. The Foundation primarily invests in programs intended to have a positive, sustainable impact on their communities. The Foundation has three community investment priorities--expanding digital literacy, promoting service, and building tomorrow's leaders. Since its inception, the Comcast Foundation has donated more than $176 million to organizations in the communities nationwide that Comcast serves. More information about the Foundation and its programs is available at www.comcast.com/community.

2016 Comcast Leaders and Achievers(®) Scholarship Winners from New Jersey:
SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS (by County where student resides)

Atlantic
Cindy Luo of Egg Harbor Township High School
Alexandra Peters of Oakcrest High School
Sydney Shuster of St. Joseph Regional High School
Veronica Sikking of Buena Regional High School
Nazia Tahia of Mainland Regional High School

Bergen
Adam Elrayes of Wallington Jr/Sr High School

Burlington
Zavian Bell of Willingboro High School
Lilla Butterworth of Moorestown Friends School
Kordell Gaspard of Burlington City High School
Evelyn Giordano of Florence Township Memorial High School
Emily Graves of Holy Cross High School
Zachary Kelly of Burlington County Institute of Technology
Julia Ma of Delran High School
Sanjana Satish Northern Burlington County Regional High School
Joshua Swain of Rancocas Valley Regional High School

Camden
Aneesha Ames of Charles E. Brimm Medical Arts School
Elizabeth Dickinson of Timber Creek Regional High School
Christyn Espinal of Camden Academy Charter High School
Sienna Gross of Pennsauken High School
Josee Jean Matela of Cherry Hill High School West
Natalie McCrudden of Haddonfield Memorial High School
Raquel Merino of Camden County Technical School
Vanessa Munoz of Camden County Technical School
Cymere Nobles of Winslow Township High School
Sarah Waro of Eastern Senior High School

Cape May
Ana Grace Fangayen of Middle Township High School
Lily Nguyen of Wildwood High School

Cumberland
Mary Linen of Bridgeton High School
Jeffrey Martine of Vineland Senior High School

Essex
Alli Ashby of West Orange High School
Kayla Calvo of Bloomfield High School
Christian Dowdell of Belleville High School
Danielle Goerke of Livingston High School
Cindy Noel of Orange High School
Diana Nunez of East Orange Campus High School
Gabrielle Ramos of Mount Saint Dominic Academy
Alexandra Walsh of James Caldwell High School

Gloucester
Rasha Abouelsaadate of West Deptford High School
Samuel Hart of Gateway Regional High School
Madison Kennelly of Gloucester County Institute of Technology
Kristen McEnroe of Washington Township High School 11-12
Tyler Reedman of Williamstown High School

Hudson
Tanaya Bell of Hudson Catholic Regional High School
Alejandrina De La Cruz of Liberty High School
Emely Fernandez of William L. Dickinson High School
Rahjetta Mix of Henry Snyder High School
Krystal Segarra of Secaucus High School
Serena Tang of Dr. Ronald McNair Academic High School
You Da Zheng of Harrison High School

Hunterdon
Karen Drake of Hunterdon Central Regional High School
Theodora Mavros of North Hunterdon High School
Morgan McCord of Voorhees High School

Mercer
Tanishq Sai Goribidanur of McVs Assunpink Center
Jacquelyn Gummel of McVs Sypeck Center Vocational School
Ryan Kreutzberg of Notre Dame High School
Anna-Graciela Samayoa of Ewing High School

Middlesex
Fion Chan of JFK Memorial High School
Sophia Frank of Carteret High School
Naome Nabi of South Plainfield High School

Monmouth
Julia Ferrari of Middletown High School North
Shelby Jain of Freehold High School
Victoria Lin of High Technology High School

Ocean
Monica Colino of Performing Arts Academy
Madeline Hubert of Ocean County Voc-Tech School
Bronwen Leibe of Toms River High School South
Cassidy Quiros of Brick Township Memorial High School
Cecelia Zitarosa of Point Pleasant Boro High School

Salem
Julianna Kamenakis of Pennsville Memorial High School
Emily Sperry of Salem High School
Jimmy Vega of Arthur P. Schalick High School

Somerset
Urooj Farooqi of Franklin High School
Max Nelson of Hillsborough High School

Union
Oluwapelumi Adesina of Rahway High School
Chadwick Beltran of Abraham Clark High School
Michael Cutro of Cranford High School
Kristine Joy Flores of Roselle Park High School
Kristina Geiger of Arthur L. Johnson High School
Alexander Gonzalez of Governor Livingston High School
Diana Louise Lenon of Union High School
Christine Podberezniak of Jonathan Dayton Regional High School
Bailey Ramirez of Union Catholic Regional High School
Laila Stedman of New Providence High School

Warren
Noelle Larino of Hackettstown High School

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SOURCE Comcast NBCUniversal