DEARBORN, Michigan – Mohamed Hussein Ghandour, a senior at Fordson High School, was awarded the $4,500 2013 Hugh Archer Memorial Scholarship during Dearborn Rotary’s annual youth month program. Criteria for winning the Archer Scholarship include application of the Rotary 4-Way Test — a guideline for decisions, academic achievement, leadership in class and extra-curricular activities, community service, plus honors and awards. The award was presented to Ghandour by Dearborn Rotarian Judge William C. Hultgren.
Fordson High School senior Mohamed Hussein Ghandour, at center, displays the Hugh Archer Memorial Scholarship Award he received, with parents Hassan Ghandour and Fatme Farhat. At left is Hassen Hammoud, Dearborn Rotary Club President and, at right, Rotarian Majed Rizk.
The Dearborn Rotary Club, through the Dearborn Rotary Foundation, awards this annual $4,500 college scholarship, which is made possible through an endowment funded by the Archer Family, Dearborn Rotary Foundation, and Spiratex Corporation, a company founded by Hugh Archer. The Hugh Archer Memorial Scholarship is awarded to a high school senior attending a public or private high school in Dearborn school district boundaries. The Dearborn Rotary Club sponsors an annual golf outing and banquet to raise funds for the scholarship.
Hugh Archer, a longtime Rotarian and Dearborn resident who passed away in 2005 at the age of 91, was a registered professional engineer whose many achievements included inventor, scientist, entrepreneur, banker, businessman, attorney, ham radio operator, sportsman, and humanitarian. He was a Dearborn Rotarian for 54 years, held several leadership positions in Rotary, and served as president of Rotary International, the world’s largest service organization with more than 1.2 million members. In addition to his Rotary service, Archer was active locally with the YMCA, Boy Scouts of America, Dearborn Schools, and Henry Ford Hospital.
The scholarship process is totally web-based, with application available on the Rotary Club of Dearborn web site, www.dearbornrotary.org, and with all communications handled via e-mail. Applications are judged by three Dearborn Rotarians. This year, the Dearborn Rotary Hugh Archer Scholarship Committee reviewed 17 applications. The scholarship has been awarded annually for the past seven years.
In addition to maintaining high academic standards, Ghandour accumulated more than 300 hours of volunteer service. He shadowed a local physician for three years who tends to younger patients, and led friends in restoring HemlockPark. His leadership roles include tennis team captain for two years, founder of the Science National Honor Society at Fordson, co-founder of Fordson Chemistry Club, four-year member of the Pre-Med Society and president for one year, and Key Club board member for three years. Ghandour’s honors and awards include Class Salutatorian, attendance at the National Youth Forum of Medicine, and recipient of the Western Wayne Athletic Conference All Academic Award. Reference letters described Ghandour as “honorable, respectful, social, resilient, and responsible young adult who believes education to be the key to success in life.”
Ghandour plans to study pre-medicine at University of Michigan – Ann Arbor. After accepting the award, Mohamed thanked Hugh Archer, Dearborn Rotary Club, and his parents. He described scholarship as “truly an honor for him”.
About Rotary
Rotary is the world’s first service organization, which was founded by Paul P. Harris in 1905 in Chicago, Illinois. The name Rotary is derived from the early practice of rotating meetings among members’ offices. Today, Rotary has evolved into an international service organization of 1.2 million business and professional leaders in 33,000 clubs worldwide. The Rotary Club of Dearborn is one of 51 clubs in Rotary District 6400 which includes Wayne, Monroe and Lenawee counties inMichigan and Essex County in Ontario. Dearborn Rotary meets weekly at Park Place in Dearborn. For additional information, visit www.dearbornrotary.org or call 313-278-7233.