Sgt. David Caruso USMC Freedom Scholarship

Sgt. David Mitchell Caruso USMC Freedom Scholarship Description

This scholarship will be awarded in honor of Sgt. David Mitchell Caruso, who was killed in action on November 9, 2004 in Fallujah, Iraq.

David was a lifelong Naperville resident and a 1998 graduate of Waubonsie Valley High School. David always lived life to the fullest and rose up to meet every challenge. His life was full of adventure, courage, perseverance and service to others. During high school, David was a member of the National Honor Society and achieved the rank of Eagle Scout with three additional palms. In 1999, David joined the Marines. In the Marines, David went on to graduate from USMC Amphibious Reconnaissance School, Army Ranger School, Jump School and Free-Fall School and ultimately became an elite Force Recon Marine.

This scholarship will be awarded to one senior at Waubonsie Valley, Metea Valley or Neuqua Valley this year. Applicants will be judged based on characteristics, which personify David's legacy including their leadership qualities, history of service to the community and their personal drive for achievement.

1 scholarship(s) available for $1000 each. This scholarship will be awarded to one student at Metea, Neuqua, or Waubonsie.

Scholarship requirements:

Open to all students

Complete the following 2 steps to apply for the Sgt. David Mitchell Caruso USMC Freedom Scholarship

1. Fill out the application (must use IPSD account):

Sgt. David Caruso Scholarship Application

*****AND*****

2. Request that two letters of recommendation be submitted on your behalf. At least one of the letters must be from a Metea staff member. Relatives are excluded from writing letters. Carefully follow the directions below:

***IMPORTANT NOTE*** If you are applying for only the Sgt. David Caruso Scholarship or if you are applying to BOTH the Sgt. David Caruso Scholarship AND the PTSA Scholarship (also on this site), you should not have any more than TWO letters (total) submitted on your behalf. This means, that if you already requested two letters for the PTSA scholarships, do NOT request more letters to be submitted. The same letters are used for both scholarships.

A. Ask each recommender (in plenty of time) if he/she would be willing to submit a letter of recommendation on your behalf.

B. If they agree, send the recommender an email with the following four pieces of information

1. Your First and Last name

2. Your Metea ID Number

3. Tell the recommender to go the following site.

Copy and paste this link into the email: https://bit.ly/Metea-Unified-Letters-of-Rec

4. This year's deadline date for submission: March 12, 2026

C. Under no circumstances should a student submit a letter that a teacher gave to them.

The participating organizations on this site have agreed to provide scholarships exclusively to IPSD seniors and/or Metea Valley seniors. Each organization will look at the information from their application, along with any required supplements for the particular awards. Some organizations require transcripts, which will automatically be sent to the requesting organizations. The criteria/selection for each award is left to the individual organizations. The number of awards and amounts are subject to change at the discretion of the donating organizations. All scholarships are one-time awards and will be given to recipients after they have been accepted at any accredited college, university, or technical/vocational school. The organization providing the scholarship will let the scholarship winner know how the money will be disbursed. All winners will be awarded at our Black and Gold Senior Awards Event in May. If you are having difficulty with your computer and compatibility to this site, please visit the College and Career Center for help.

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