Vail Christian High School names 3 recipients of annual academic and arts scholarships

Vail Christian High School announced the three recipients of its academic and arts scholarships during its awards ceremony on Feb. 26.

The 2025 academic merit Honor Scholarship was awarded to two Eagle County eighth graders, Gabriella Gregg and Owen Hasemann.

This year, there were 24 nominations for the Honor Scholarship. Gregg and Hasemann, both students at Eagle County Charter Academy, were chosen for the merit-based scholarships on the basis of grades, standardized test scores, teacher recommendations, written essays and personal interviews conducted by a panel of three ninth grade teachers.

This is the ninth year that Vail Christian High School has awarded the Honor Scholarship to incoming freshmen through a process based on academic merit and achievement. Winners must maintain a GPA of 3.75 throughout their four years of schooling and must exhibit strong character and leadership. 

The Honor Scholarship provides half-price tuition each year until graduation from Vail Christian High School, totaling over $50,000 per student over four years. Gregg and Hasemann will be part of the school’s incoming freshman class who will graduate in 2029. 

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Stella Giordano, a student at Stone Creek Charter School, received the Heart of an Artist Scholarship. Giordano is an accomplished performing artist who studied in Spain for a year, earning the lead role in the Catalan language production of Matilda. She also has a passion for gymnastics, photography, travel, language and culture. 

The unique Heart of an Artist Scholarship offers $5,000 off tuition, renewable for four years. This is the third year of this scholarship opportunity, and six nominees were vying for the single scholarship.

Candidates must be nominated by a teacher and demonstrate both breadth and depth in their creative pursuits by submitting a portfolio along with their application. The recipient must commit to taking fine arts classes each year in Vail Christian High School’s art disciplines of Studio Art, Digital Media, Theater and Music. It is part of the Vail Christian mission to develop and celebrate the whole person and ignite passion in arts, academics and athletics. 

“We value the unique traits of our students and love to see them so clearly align with our school’s core values of Excellence, Character, Faith and Community,” said Steve O’Neil, head of school. “The arts are as essential as the academic and athletic programs and we celebrate them at Vail Christian High School. Our student body has versatile talents and gifts and we are proud to honor them in this way.”