Flinn Scholars
Providing world-class undergraduate education in partnership with Arizona’s public universities.
The Flinn Scholarship
The Flinn Scholarship isn’t about what you get. It’s about who you become and the impact you make. With the world-class education made possible by the Flinn Scholarship, you can become an agent of discovery, creativity and leadership who will make a difference.
The Flinn Scholarship—valued at more than $120,000—covers tuition, fees, housing, and meals at one of Arizona’s public universities, plus study abroad. Each year, about 20 top high-school seniors are chosen to learn from amazing faculty, business leaders, and civic innovators and join a vibrant, eclectic community—including a powerful alumni network.
What’s the Flinn Scholar blueprint? There is none. Scholars emerge from throughout Arizona and become leaders in every discipline you can imagine.
Flinn Scholars embark on new educational and career paths
Several of this year’s outgoing Flinn Scholars—who reflect about their Flinn Scholars experience in short videos—will remain in Arizona to attend medical school, graduate school, finish a paid internship, and enter the workforce in finance, tech, and other industries.
Other Scholars will pursue medical, law, doctorate, and master’s degrees at institutions around the country, while two will go overseas for graduate school, and another to work for the Cheetah Conservation Fund in Namibia. [Watch Videos]
2020 Flinn Scholars thank educators in video messages
The Flinn Scholars from the Class of 2020 have paid tribute to the educators who had the greatest impact on their academic and personal development with heartfelt messages expressed in short videos.
The 2020 Flinn Scholars selected current educators, kindergarten and elementary-school teachers, and a college counselor who have taught the Scholars subjects ranging from robotics and English, to art and chemistry. The videos were first shown during a May 14 virtual celebration honoring the incoming 2020 Flinn Scholars, the outgoing Scholars, and the educators. [Watch Videos]
Top Arizona students selected for 35th class of Flinn Scholars
The Flinn Scholars Class of 2020 includes two schools celebrating their first Flinn Scholars, five schools with their second Flinn Scholar, and a total of 18 schools represented in the cohort that will attend Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University, and the University of Arizona.
The merit-based award for Arizona high-school seniors covers the full cost of tuition, mandatory fees, housing, meals, and a myriad of exclusive opportunities—a package valued at more than $120,000. A record 1,014 students applied for the 2020 Flinn Scholarship. [Meet the Scholars]
Michelle Minitti | 1991 Flinn Scholar
On two journeys: a mission to Mars, and her own odyssey to become a planetary scientist
Class of 1991 Flinn Scholar Michelle Minitti is the principal of Framework, a consultancy specializing in planetary-science research and Mars mission operations. Michelle is a co-investigator for the Mars Curiosity Rover, working with members of the engineering and operations teams utilizing the Mars Hand Lens Imager and the Mars Descent Imager projects; as co-investigator for the Mars 2020 Rover, she contributes to planning for operations of the Wide Angle Topographic Sensor for Operations and Engineering (WATSON) investigation. Michelle is a graduate of the University of Arizona and earned a Ph.D. in geological sciences from Brown University. [Watch the video]
Flinn Scholar and Flinn-Brown Fellow Sarah Coles advocates for today’s patients and tomorrow’s doctors
Dr. Sarah Coles is caring for the residents of Arizona in countless ways.
Coles, a Flinn-Brown Fellow, is a physician, educator, curriculum developer, policy expert, a member of state and national boards, and overall advocate for patient health.
And this all happens one mile south of North High School in central Phoenix, where Coles was selected as a Flinn Scholar in 2002 and chose to attend the University of Arizona—sparking a lifelong commitment to the health of the state.
[Read more]
FLINNtalks: Nathan Johnson | 1986 Flinn Scholar in conversation with Jake Batsell | 1992 Flinn Scholar
On how the Flinn Scholarship can enhance a focus—or enable extraordinary exploration
A member of the inaugural Class of 1986 Flinn Scholars, Nathan Johnson was elected to the Texas State Senate in November 2018 to represent District 16, comprising all or portions of 10 cities in the northern part of Dallas County. He practices law at Thompson & Knight as counsel in the firm’s Trial Practice Group in Dallas. Nathan, who graduated from the University of Arizona with a degree in physics and earned a law degree at the University of Texas at Austin, also trained as a pianist and has composed music for the classical concert stage. During a hiatus from practicing law, he composed the score for nearly seventy television episodes and five films for the hit anime series Dragon Ball Z.
[Watch the video]
Details For
A great Flinn Scholarship application has many components. But we only select students we believe we really know. Be yourself.
There are a number of specific ways throughout your student’s high-school years to help ensure a strong application and candidacy.
In addition to student-submitted materials, the application requires two teacher recommendations and a high-school academic counselor’s report.
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News and Updates
Flinn Scholars
Flinn Scholars Recognition Celebration honors incoming and outgoing Scholars, educators
The Flinn Scholars Program in May celebrated the accomplishments of the 2020 Flinn Scholars, the outgoing Scholars attending Arizona’s three state universities, and Distinguished Educators selected by the new Flinn Scholars for having the greatest impact on their academic and personal development. The virtual event, which attracted Flinn Scholar alumni viewers dating back to the […]
Flinn Scholars
Flinn Scholars embark on new educational and career paths
Each year as the Flinn Scholars Program welcomes a new class, another group of Flinn Scholars transition to alumni as they continue their educational and professional pursuits in Arizona, across the United States, and the far reaches of the world. Several of this year’s outgoing Scholars—who share in short videos below reflections on their Flinn […]
Flinn Scholars
2020 Flinn Scholars thank educators in video messages
The Flinn Scholars from the Class of 2020 paid tribute during a virtual celebration last week to the educators who had the greatest impact on their academic and personal development. The 2020 Flinn Scholars selected current educators, kindergarten and elementary-school teachers, and a college counselor who have taught the Scholars subjects ranging from robotics and English, to art and chemistry. The 19 Flinn Scholars from the Class of 2020 honored their Distinguished Educators with heartfelt messages expressed in short videos. The 2020 Distinguished […]
Flinn Scholars
Flinn Foundation selects top Arizona students for 35th class of Flinn Scholars
For the 35th straight year, a cohort of Arizona’s highest-achieving high-school seniors has chosen to forego attending out-of-state universities and accept the prestigious Flinn Scholarship. The merit-based award, supported by the Phoenix-based Flinn Foundation in partnership with Arizona’s three state universities, covers the full cost of tuition, mandatory fees, housing, meals, and a myriad of […]
For information about Flinn Scholars, please contact:
flinnscholars@flinn.org or (602) 744-6802
Anne Lassen
Vice President, Scholarship and Education Initiatives
Haydee Kukowski
Program Manager, Scholarship and Education Initiatives
Joan Diercks
Program Coordinator, Scholarship and Education Initiatives