The Renton School District has another Gates Millennium Scholar. Hazen High School’s Minh-Thu Nguyen was named a 2015 Gates Millennium Scholar, one of about 1,000 high school and college students worldwide chosen for the honor.

The Hazen senior received the award based on her academic achievement, community service and leadership abilities. With the scholarship, Nguyen will be granted a full-ride to college and graduate school studies, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. She has decided to pursue a medical degree at the University of Washington.

“In high school I discovered a passion for helping others, and grew the most as a person,” said Nguyen. “After I participated in Summer Youth Leadership Program, a leadership program targeted towards Asian American teens, I became interested in social justice and equal rights activism.”

According to a district press release, her interest and leadership abilities grew while attending Hazen. She co-founded “Liberasian,” a group she organized to offer free workshops of various forms of art to promote minority representation and advocacy for societal change.

Chances of winning the scholarship are rare, but the Renton School District has had success in the past. Recent past award winners include Lindbergh High senior Thanh Dinh in 2014, and Renton High School seniors Lindsay Dacuan in 2010 and Rakib Mirza in 2011.