BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — Kharis Taylor, of Vacherie, is a sophomore at Southern University.

Kharis is not just any student though, the St. James High School graduate is one of less than 30 people in the country who was awarded the Sallie Mae “Bridging the Dream scholarship.”

The scholarship is offered in partnership with the Thurgood Marshall College Fund.

Kharis was one of 1,800 applicants who competed for the 2021-2022 scholarships.

In the end, this standout student was one of the 28 people chosen to receive this scholarship.

The good news arrived during her senior year of high school.

The scholarship comes with a financial award of $10,000, $5000 per semester.

According to Kharis, “The scholarship is designed to remove financial barriers for diverse students trying to get in college and stay in college.”

So what is Kharis studying at Southern?

The local student is an English major on a pre-law track.

Kharis believes that “a background in English and literature will be a great foundation for her to have when pursuing a law degree.”

The Vacherie native would like to become a civil rights attorney.

The Southern student would like to “bring attention to those the system continuously fails, and seek equity and justice on their behalf.”

If you are interested in applying for this scholarship, visit Thurgood Marshall College Fund.