Undaunted by an unsuccessful two-year effort to start an interscholastic equestrian league at Crescenta Valley High School, recent CVHS graduate Clair Schleuter turned her energy and persistence to track, academics and her love of horses. Her drive was rewarded by being named the recipient of a scholarship from the Italian Catholic Federation. The partial scholarship is awarded to selected students in California, Arizona, Nevada and Chicago where ICF maintains branches. Schleuter’s scholarship was awarded by ICF Branch 374 president Jack DeZell at a recent branch meeting. The branch is affiliated with St. Bede the Venerable Roman Catholic Church in La Cañada Flintridge. Schleuter’s maternal grandparents, who live in San Diego, are of Italian heritage, a prerequisite for the scholarship, which is based on academic achievement and school activity in high school.

Born in La Jolla, Schleuter, the daughter of Nicole and Frank Schleuter, attended Glendale’s Fremont Elementary in fifth and sixth grades and Rosemont Middle School and she graduated from Crescenta Valley High School as part of the class of 2017.

She will be attending the University of California, Riverside where she will peruse her passion for biological science as a biotechnology major. Her goal is to eventually earn a Ph.D. in the field.