Nathaniel Shugarman of Coral Shores High School will represent Monroe County as a Sunshine State Scholar.
The state scholar program awards a one-year college scholarship to each student chosen for the honor. Students are chosen based on their accomplishments in the areas of science, technology, engineering and/or math (STEM). The scholarships are funded by Florida’s Prepaid College Foundation and State Farm Insurance.
Students across Florida, and their parents, will attend a special event in Orlando in April to celebrate their achievements. At that event, they will meet with higher-education representatives in Florida to talk about their future and have the opportunity to listen to top scholars in the STEM fields.
During his years attending school in Monroe County, Shugarman has excelled in many areas of study, completing numerous advanced math and science courses; he consistently earns a perfect score of 5 on AP exams in all subjects and scored a perfect score of 1520 on his PSAT test.
During summer months, he has advanced his education in various fields of physics at such prestigious schools as Duke University and Brown University, as well as taking a physics course from the U.S. Department of Energy.
“In my 30 years of teaching in Monroe County I have never seen a more qualified candidate to represent our district for Sunshine State Scholars than Nathaniel Shugarman,” said Diane Wischmeier, math teacher at Coral Shores.
He is not just an excellent student. He is the president of Mu Alpha Theta, the school’s math honor society; a member of the school’s student council and the academic challenge team; a member of Interact, a Rotary-sponsored club focusing on leadership and community involvement; and a member of the Village Youth Council. He participates in cross country and lacrosse and has earned over 200 hours of community service.
“Nathaniel is truly a hard-working and gifted student and we are proud to have him represent us as the Monroe County Sunshine State Scholar in 2025,” said Theresa Axford, school superintendent. “I have no doubt he will go on to accomplish great things both in his future education and in whatever career field he chooses.”
Nathaniel Bergh from Key West High School and Justin Lopez from Marathon High School were runners-up in the district selection process.
