JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The PGA TOUR has created a full scholarship to Florida State College at Jacksonville in honor of Raines High School alum A.J. Laguerre Jr., who was one of three people killed one year ago Monday in a racially motivated attack at a Jacksonville Dollar General.
The A.J. Laguerre Jr. Endowed Scholarship honors the memory of the 19-year-old, who was a video game and streaming enthusiast and aspired to study cybersecurity in college.
The scholarship benefits high school graduates enrolled or seeking enrollment at FSCJ for Cybersecurity, IT Security or a related major. Preference will be given to students residing in Health Zone 1 ZIP codes (32202, 32204, 32206, 32208, 32209 and 32254).
Minorities are underrepresented in many high-wage jobs and STEM careers, and technology leaders from various organizations participated in a panel at Raines High School on Monday, ahead of the scholarship announcement.
More than 200 students at Raines were the first to learn of the scholarship, which was established by the PGA TOUR and THE PLAYERS Championship.
“As members of this community, we strive to ensure that the contributions our tournament and the PGA TOUR make are meaningful and have a lasting impact,” said Lee Smith, executive director of THE PLAYERS. “We are honored to play a small part in ensuring AJ’s legacy reflects and supports the dreams of future FSCJ students with similar goals.”
During the scholarship announcement, College President John Avendano posthumously awarded Laguerre with an Honorary Associate in Science degree in Cybersecurity. Along with a custom jersey, the degree was presented to family members in attendance.
“Seeing our graduate honored at his alma mater with the announcement of the AJ Laguerre Jr. Endowed Scholarship is truly heartwarming,” said Superintendent Dr. Christopher Bernier. “I am thankful to The PGA TOUR, THE PLAYERS and FSCJ for ensuring that AJ’s legacy will continue to be one of hope in this community.”
Students can visit fscj.edu/scholarships to apply.