Helena High School Senior Duong “Katie” Nguyen, has been awarded the Vern Davis Legacy Scholarship, a $500 scholarship awarded annually to a graduating Shelby County senior enrolling into a four-year college with a planned major in education.

The Vern Davis Legacy Scholarship is named in honor of J. Verner Davis, who served the Shelby County Schools for other 30 years as a teacher, Federal Program Administrator, Associate Superintendent and Deputy Superintendent until his retirement in 1992.  During his more than 39 total years in education, Mr. Davis never lost his love for the classroom or his compassion and understanding of the needs of classroom teachers.   His family and friends established a permanent memorial fund to finance annual scholarships for deserving student entering the education field.  The principal and counselor select recipients of the scholarship, which is rotated annually between all Shelby County high schools.

Nguyen, the daughter of Oanh Ho and Tuyen Nguyen, is planning to attend the University of Montevallo.  Her high school honors include National Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta National Math Honor Society, National Spanish Honor Society, and National English Honor Society.  School counselor Kim Bailey described Nguyen as a caring, hard-working student who will one day have a lasting impact on every child she teaches.

“Moving to the United States at the age of 8, she spoke very little English,” Bailey said of Nguyen. “She says that it was a struggle at that time, but she was determined to excel.  Now, as a senior, Duong has a 4.12 GPA and is at the top her her class.  She is the perfect example of how hard work yields results.  Having that experience will only add to her ability to help her students succeed in difficult circumstances.”