Awards
We are pleased to announce the winners of the Jefferies Family Scholarship, which is awarded to the children of Jefferies employees who have demonstrated outstanding achievement inside and outside the classroom. Collectively, 64 students will receive a total of $792,500 in scholarships for the 2026-27 school year
The program is about more than just the $12,500 educational scholarships, students can also win special awards. The JFS Board of Directors voted to increase two of the special awards by $2,000 each, raising the total value to $5,000. Through the annual drawing, one lucky applicant was selected to receive the Application Incentive Award, now worth $5,000, just for applying. The selection committee also selected another applicant to receive the $5,000 Jefferies Award of Merit scholarship. And finally, the committee selected one deserving student to receive the Carl Hathaway Memorial Award, an academic scholarship worth $15,000.
We thank all parents who encouraged their children to apply and all our applicants, some of whom completed the abbreviated form. We commend this year’s recipients and graduates for the excellence they represent in our scholarship program and our firm and also congratulate the employees whose children were selected for an award.
Awards of this value and number would not be possible without the generous donations from Jefferies and our many contributors. To see our list of donors, please visit our Degrees of Giving page found on the jefferiesscholarship.org website under Support JFS. With the greater outflows required to supply these scholarships, which are expected to continue increasing given the growth and demographics of the firm, we want to ensure that the fund stays healthy for future students’ benefit. Be on the lookout for opportunities to donate to this unique and important program that supports families of our Jefferies employees.
Warm Regards,
Jeff and Chris
JFS Co-Chairmen
2026 Educational Scholarship Recipients
| Isabella Adorable Daughter of Arnel Adorable Cooper Medical School at Rowan University | William Braswell Son of Michelle Robinson Auburn University | Scarlett Cahn Daughter of Douglas Cahn University at Buffalo |
| Eden Clarkson Daughter of Julia Clarkson Loyola School | Eloise Cook Daughter of Barbra‑Ann Cook King’s College London or another school TBD | Colin Correia Son of Camilo Correia San Diego State University |
| Saraeya Ernandez Daughter of Latisha Greene Paramus Catholic High School | Andrea Estrada‑Marcial Daughter of Joalys Marcial Fairleigh Dickinson University | Jay Fernandes Son of Theresa Sunita Fernandes School TBD |
| Tanya Fernandes Daughter of Theresa Sunita Fernandes School TBD | Bhoomika Garg Daughter of Anant Kumar Garg University of Abertay Dundee | Adhya Gummadi Daughter of Lakshman Gummadi Rutgers University – New Brunswick |
| Rohit Gummadi Son of Lakshman Gummadi Cornell University | Libi Hakimi Daughter of Payam Daniel Hakimi School TBD | Daniel Herling‑Nilsson Son of Jeffrey Nilsson York College of Pennsylvania |
| Tyler Herling‑Nilsson Son of Jeffrey Nilsson York College of Pennsylvania | Maya Jean Philippe Daughter of Aline Jean Philippe Pratt Institute | Krishiv Kedia Son of Prashant Kedia Dhirubhai Ambani International School |
| Bethany Loveland Daughter of Ben Loveland University of Cambridge or another school TBD | Noelle Gwyneth Pacete Daughter of Noela Erlinda Perez De La Salle University, Manila | Pranav Prabhu Son of Ganapathi Prabhu Medical School TBD |
| Ranbir Suri Son of Sheetal Deep University of Birmingham |
2026 Jefferies Award of Merit (JAM)
Cassara Yannarelli will be a freshman at Johns Hopkins University majoring in biophysics where she will use her $5,000 JAM scholarship. During high school she was highly involved as an athlete, a founder of clubs benefiting children, a researcher, a member of several clubs and honors societies, an executive officer in ROTC, and vice president of her school’s student government. Her father, Steven Yannarelli, is a Managing Director of JFIN Finance in Jefferies’ New York City Office.
2026 Application Incentive Award (AIA)
This lucky applicant’s name was drawn at random from those not selected for another award, to receive a $5,000 scholarship, just for completing an application! Walter Valentine is a junior at University of Kentucky where he is majoring finance. His father, Gregory Valentine, is a Managing Director of Mergers and Acquisitions in Jefferies’ Charlotte Office.
2026 Alan Herrick Memorial Award (AHMA)
Alan is remembered as being a well-rounded, spirited and a passionate student athlete and artist. Each year, an educational scholarship recipient who best exhibits Alan’s qualities of good sportsmanship, generosity to others, and/or involvement in the arts is selected for this honor, which comes with an engraved crystal award.
An athlete, mentor, and leader, this three-season athlete also participates in dance year-round. Eden Clarkson was selected to receive this year’s Alan Herrick Memorial Award.
2026 Carl Hathaway Memorial Award (CHMA)
In memory of Chairman Emeritus Carl Hathaway, who served on the selection committee for 37 years, one applicant is selected to receive a larger scholarship of $15,000. This award is based on the applicant’s demonstration of the following characteristics, which Carl recognized as key to individual success: overcoming adversity; showing perseverance, grit, and drive; or coping with overwhelming factors to succeed.
Eloise Cook plans to double major at university in psychology and criminology. While maintaining high marks, she worked and volunteered throughout secondary school. In addition to serving as both a house captain and senior prefect, she manages her school’s sixth form social media.
2026 Renewals
In addition to the new recipients, the applications of 40 current recipients were approved for renewal. Congratulations to the parents of students who maintained full-time attendance and a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher!
The Jefferies Family Scholarship
I cannot thank you enough for giving me the scholarship. The scholarship helps me financially, but more importantly it gives me confidence to study well, as I now know that there are people who are confident that I will succeed in achieving my life goals and they want to support me doing that. Thank you for the trust you have showed in me.
Aditya Soni
JFS Recipient