2023 Scholarship Winners Honored

$10,000 in scholarships were awarded to Jose Gonzalez (Chiles), Betrice Drayton (Rickards) and RJ Hosay (Maclay) at our annual awards dinner in Tallahassee.

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2024 Scholarship Info

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2023 Scholarship Winners

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Making an Impact

Ethan Stewart

2022 Scholarship Winner

“When I first got the call to varsity my sophomore year Gio was the first person to come to me. He really taught me that in soccer, your team is family and you can’t really have anything like that so being able to receive a scholarship that’s in memory of Gio is awesome. It means I have a part of him that’s always going to be with me.”

Ron Vitrano

Gio’s Dad & Foundation President

“These are great high school students, athletes, pillars of the community. To be able to help out a little bit, I think that’s the key. It helps ease the pain of what happened. Giovanni died six and a half months ago, but to watch these young students and athletes walk away with these awards, it warms my heart.”

Jose Gonzalez

2023 Scholarship Winner

“I’m overwhelmingly happy with winning the scholarship. Thank you to the foundation for this experience, it’s been incredible.”

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Class of 2024 Scholarship Information

Who is eligible to apply for our scholarship?

Giovanni Vitrano graduation photo in a red cap and gown on a covered bridge

The application window for the 2023 Giovanni Vitrano Memorial Scholarships has closed. Applications for the Class of 2024 will open during the 2023-24 school year. While criteria may be updated for the class of 2024, applicants can keep in mind the used for the Class of 2023:

Played soccer at the Varsity High School or equivalent club level.
Is a graduating member of the Class of 2023.
Have a 3.2 GPA or higher as of January 31, 2023.
Reside in the Tallahassee, FL & Thomasville, GA media market. This area includes Leon, Franklin, Gadsden, Wakulla, Jefferson, Jackson, Liberty, Madison, Taylor, Lafayette, Suwannee, and Hamilton counties in Florida and Seminole, Miller, Decatur, Grady, Thomas, Brooks, Lowndes, Lanier, and Echols counties in Georgia.

Interested applicants should check back at the beginning of the 2023-24 school year for more information about how and when to apply.

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The Giovanni Vitrano Scholarship

Class of 2023 Winners

Jose Gonzales - $6,000 Scholarship Winner

Jose co-founded the Physical Club and participated in Science Olympiad, the National Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta, and more. He led the Chiles Boys’ Soccer Team to the 2022 Gio Cup Championship and the 2022-23 District Championship. Jose will attend Penn in the fall. Jose will attend Penn in the fall.

Betrice Drayton - $2,000 Scholarship Winner

Betrice is a talented soccer player who scored 41 goals in 14 games this season, ranking as one of only two girls in Leon County with 40+ goals. She is also an ABC 27 Scholar-Athlete of the Week award recipient and will attend West Florida College.

RJ Hosay - $2,000 Scholarship Winner

RJ is the Editor-in-Chief of The Andalusian School Newspaper and a member of the National Honor Society, Science National Honor Society, and All-Florida Scholastic Press Association. He scored 44 goals in his varsity soccer career at Maclay and was named ABC 27 Scholar-Athlete of the Week. RJ will attend the University of Florida.

THE GIOVANNI VITRANO FOUNDATION

NEWS COVERAGE

Our Foundation has been featured in the Tallahassee Democrat, WCTV (CBS Tallahassee), WTXL (ABC Tallahassee) and more.