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    <title>Flinn Scholars</title>
    <link>http://flinnscholars.org</link>
    <language>en-us</language>
    <item>
      <title>Graduating scholars to embark on new paths</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;Sixteen graduating Flinn Scholars, who are preparing to start new life adventures later this year, were honored during the Flinn Scholars Program&amp;rsquo;s annual Recognition Dinner May 4 at the Ritz-Carlton in Phoenix.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Flinn Scholars</author>
      <pubDate>2013-05-10</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/news/1138</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Flinn Scholar Class of 2013 honors educators</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;The Flinn Scholars Program and its Class of 2013 honored the Arizona educators who played a special role in the education and development of the high-school seniors.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Flinn Scholars</author>
      <pubDate>2013-05-09</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/news/1139</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Summer Travel Application Deadline</title>
      <description>Summer Travel Application Deadline</description>
      <author></author>
      <pubDate>2013-05-08 14:07:00 -0700</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/key-dates#1413</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Spring Travel Application Deadline</title>
      <description>Spring Travel Application Deadline</description>
      <author></author>
      <pubDate>2013-05-08 14:06:09 -0700</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/key-dates#1412</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Winter Travel Application Deadline</title>
      <description>Winter Travel Application Deadline</description>
      <author></author>
      <pubDate>2013-05-08 14:05:12 -0700</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/key-dates#1411</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Fall Travel Application Deadline</title>
      <description>Fall Travel Application Deadline</description>
      <author></author>
      <pubDate>2013-05-08 14:04:11 -0700</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/key-dates#1410</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Scholar's Retreat</title>
      <description>Scholar's Retreat</description>
      <author></author>
      <pubDate>2013-05-07 13:28:38 -0700</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/key-dates#1409</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>20 new Flinn Scholars chosen among Arizona's top students</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;PHOENIX&amp;mdash;Twenty of Arizona&amp;rsquo;s most talented high-school seniors have been awarded the 2013 Flinn Scholarship, an intensely competitive and prestigious merit-based award that provides a comprehensive educational package at an Arizona public university.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Flinn Scholars</author>
      <pubDate>2013-04-24</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/news/1136</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>20 new Flinn Scholars chosen among Arizona's top students</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;PHOENIX&amp;mdash;Twenty of Arizona&amp;rsquo;s most talented high-school seniors have been awarded the 2013 Flinn Scholarship, an intensely competitive and prestigious merit-based award that provides a comprehensive educational package at an Arizona public university.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Flinn Scholars</author>
      <pubDate>2013-04-24</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/news/1135</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Information Sessions Upcoming for 2014 Flinn Scholarship</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;The Flinn Scholars Program will host a series of informational meetings for Arizona high-school students from late March through early April. The sessions, in Phoenix, Flagstaff, Tempe, and Tucson will discuss the 2014 scholarship. &lt;em&gt;Application available August, 2013.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Flinn Scholars</author>
      <pubDate>2013-03-10</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/news/997</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Four Tips for Your Flinnterview</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;em&gt;For our current Flinn Scholarship finalists&amp;mdash;and all who hope to become one next year or the year after&amp;mdash;here are some practical pearls of wisdom I would suggest you keep in mind in advance of your interview.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Symbol;"&gt;&amp;middot;&lt;span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman';"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Symbol;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;em&gt;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; Dress for the occasion.&lt;/em&gt;&amp;nbsp;Show the Selection Committee that you want the Scholarship. This isn&amp;rsquo;t the time for dad&amp;rsquo;s old corduroy pants or mom&amp;rsquo;s 80&amp;rsquo;s neon orange blazer. For men: Your belt should match your shoes, and if your socks are white, do&amp;nbsp;&lt;em&gt;not&lt;/em&gt;&amp;nbsp;color the tops in with a sharpie to match your suit. Really. For women: Business attire never means your homecoming dress with a suit jacket. And keep in mind that neutral colors or classic black are strong choices for your professional wardrobe.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Symbol;"&gt;&amp;middot;&lt;span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman';"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;em&gt;Don&amp;rsquo;t look lost.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/em&gt;Despite the pressure you may be feeling, you want to appear comfortable with your surroundings. Focus your attention on the Selection Committee members with whom you are speaking. If your eyes keep darting around the room, you may appear unfocused or give the impression that you&amp;rsquo;d rather be anywhere but there. It will help to have arrived well before your interview time.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; Make eye contact with everyone.&lt;/em&gt;&amp;nbsp;If you only look at one person on the Selection Committee, you sacrifice an opportunity to connect with the other interviewers. Start by speaking to the individual who asked the question, but remember that the other panelists care about your answer too. And there&amp;rsquo;s a lot to be said for good posture, not fidgeting, and resisting the urge to constantly brush hair out of your eyes. And, smile!&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Symbol;"&gt;&amp;middot;&lt;span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman';"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;em&gt;Answer the questions you&amp;rsquo;re given.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/em&gt;Circling around a question, diverting to a prepared talking point, defaulting to &amp;ldquo;I really want this scholarship,&amp;rdquo; or telling a story that isn&amp;rsquo;t obviously related won&amp;rsquo;t reflect well on the fantastic person you are. If you need to ask for clarification, that&amp;rsquo;s fine. Additionally, if you can, identify a counterpoint to the question and address it in your answer. Then acknowledge the counterpoint to your answer.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Symbol;"&gt;&amp;middot;&lt;span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman';"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;em&gt;Own your opinions.&lt;/em&gt;&amp;nbsp;&amp;ldquo;I don&amp;rsquo;t know&amp;rdquo; is an acceptable answer when it&amp;rsquo;s true, but if you decline to disclose an opinion or answer, you are missing the whole point of the interview. In an effective interview, the Selection Committee will challenge you and make you a little uncomfortable. In an effective interview, you won&amp;rsquo;t be afraid to be yourself..&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;We look forward to seeing our finalists very soon! We know you will all deliver great interviews.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Hannah Carlisle</author>
      <pubDate>2013-02-20</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/articles/3292</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Tucson Information Session</title>
      <description>Tucson Information Session</description>
      <author></author>
      <pubDate>2013-02-19 16:12:51 -0700</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/key-dates#1386</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Flagstaff Information Session</title>
      <description>Flagstaff Information Session</description>
      <author></author>
      <pubDate>2013-02-19 16:07:56 -0700</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/key-dates#1385</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Tempe Information Session</title>
      <description>Tempe Information Session</description>
      <author></author>
      <pubDate>2013-02-19 15:55:18 -0700</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/key-dates#1384</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>March 27 Information Session</title>
      <description>March 27 Information Session</description>
      <author></author>
      <pubDate>2013-02-19 15:31:13 -0700</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/key-dates#1383</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>March 26 Information Session</title>
      <description>March 26 Information Session</description>
      <author></author>
      <pubDate>2013-02-04 16:33:36 -0700</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/key-dates#1378</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Arizona Science Center Information Sessions</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Each spring, the Flinn Scholars Program hosts two information sessions at the Arizona Science Center.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;This year, the information sessions are March 26 and 27 from 6-9 pm in the Flinn Theater inside the Arizona Science Center. If you are a high school student or parent of one who wants to know who we are, what the scholarship entails, and how to apply, please come!&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;RSVPs are now closed.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Hannah Carlisle</author>
      <pubDate>2013-02-04</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/articles/3290</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Interview season arrives</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;Already, a record-setting 650+ applications for the 2013 Flinn Scholarship have been winnowed to the final 72. Now comes the &lt;em&gt;really &lt;/em&gt;exciting part: on January 4 and 5, the semifinalists for one of the most prestigious merit-based scholarships in the nation will gather at the Flinn Foundation for interviews.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Flinn Scholars</author>
      <pubDate>2013-01-04</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/news/1113</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>A Bit of Advice from Stephen</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Each year, Flinn scholars write letters of encouragement to students completing the scholarship application. Here is what Stephen has to say.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Hey there,&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;My name is Stephen Bergauer, and I am from the Flinn Scholar Class of 2012 (and a 2016 Sun Devil, majoring in Math and Finance). At this point, it&amp;rsquo;s hard for me to believe that, just one year ago, I was sitting in exactly the same position you were in, reading a similar email encouraging me to finish my application, largely blank at the time. Growing up in Chandler, I had heard of the Flinn Scholars program in somewhat mythical terms &amp;ndash; a benefit reserved only for students curing cancer in high school while holding down multiple full-time jobs and playing in eight sports. Reading through the Foundation&amp;rsquo;s website of past scholars only confirmed my suspicions: these people were traveling to Africa and Asia and Antarctica trying to cure world hunger, third-world dysentery/malaria/measles/cholera, and sociopolitical inequality&amp;mdash;all at the same time.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;As I&amp;rsquo;m sure many of you did, I attended one of the scholarship information sessions held during the spring of my junior year; if anything, this made me even less confident in my accomplishments. I thought that there was no way that I could be part of this select group&amp;mdash;I had already made plans to attend an out-of-state school that was offering me a substantial scholarship and just finished my application out of a chance of a dream of a hope that I could be a Flinn Scholar. Six months later, after two rounds of interviews, I received that phone call in mid-March informing me that I was a scholar; I&amp;rsquo;m sure I wasn&amp;rsquo;t the first to laugh, cry, run laps around my house, and immediately accept all at the same time.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;When you look over the Flinn program benefits, I&amp;rsquo;m sure you noticed the full-ride scholarship value, the extensive travel opportunities, and the networking events sponsored by the Foundation. While all of these are fantastic benefits, I want to stress one that can often be overlooked: the idea of a &amp;ldquo;community of scholars.&amp;rdquo; In high school, I was a complete and total nerd &amp;ndash; president and state champion in Academic Decathlon, leader of my school&amp;rsquo;s We the People team, member of the Knowledge Masters club. Despite this, I had always felt like &amp;ldquo;the smartest man in the room&amp;rdquo; in my high school classes, like I could never truly fit in because I always seemed to know more than most of the people around me. As aspiring Flinn Scholars and excellent students, I&amp;rsquo;m sure some of you have felt a similar way and are afraid that you might face a similar situation at an Arizona university &amp;ndash; still being the smartest person in the room, alone at the top, in a sense. Even though I&amp;rsquo;ve only been part of this program for a few months, I have already met more people that are not only dedicated to their studies but are also actively involved in issues that matter to them &amp;ndash; whether on a global, national, or local scale. I&amp;rsquo;m not ashamed to admit that many of my fellow scholars are much smarter than I am and that I can only hope to equal their accomplishments. By being part of this &amp;ldquo;community of scholars,&amp;rdquo; you already have an established group of intelligent, dedicated individuals from day one on campus&amp;mdash;an experience that no Ivy League or &amp;ldquo;better&amp;rdquo; school could ever match. Choosing to stay in-state and take the Flinn was probably the best decision I have ever made.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I&amp;rsquo;d like to close with a few pieces of advice, some specific, some general, about the application process. On the paper application itself, don&amp;rsquo;t hesitate to brag about yourself. If you&amp;rsquo;re applying for this scholarship, then you have obviously excelled in your classes and are involved in leadership activities both on- and off-campus; however, all the other applicants also have these same traits. What makes you different? What can you use the scholarship for that nobody else can? On the essays, try to think outside-the-box. Brainstorm a list of ideas about the essay, then cross off the first five; somebody else is already using them. To paraphrase my favorite physics teacher in high school, you need to &amp;ldquo;rise above the masses&amp;rdquo;&amp;mdash;don&amp;rsquo;t be afraid to take a chance! The scholarship committee is reading hundreds of essays, and yours needs to literally jump off the page.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;As far as the interviews are concerned, the best advice I can give you is to be authentic and passionate. The questions will range from your resume and accomplishments to interesting ideas presented in your application essays to your thoughts on current social, political, or economic issues, on scales ranging from global to local. Because this range is so wide, there&amp;rsquo;s simply no way that you can adequately prepare for them, so beyond learning about the world around you and current hot-button events (read a newspaper!), there&amp;rsquo;s not much you can do to prepare. What I think the committee is really looking for is passion and authenticity &amp;ndash; two qualities that are fairly difficult to fake. You&amp;rsquo;ve been involved in many activities throughout high school; what drove you to choose those? What did you hope to get out of them? What did you get out of them? What issues are you passionate about, and how do you think the Flinn can help you achieve your goals? If you can answer these questions, I think you&amp;rsquo;ll be an excellent candidate for the scholarship.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I wish you all the best, and I hope to see you join our newest class of scholars next year! If you have any questions about ASU, business majors, the Scholars program, or transitioning to college in general, please don&amp;rsquo;t hesitate to email me.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Thanks,&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Stephen Bergauer&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;sbergaue@asu.edu&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>In Their Own Words</author>
      <pubDate>2012-10-12</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/articles/3276</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Greetings from Annie</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Each year, scholars write letters of encouragement to students applying for the Flinn scholarship. Here's what Annie Carson has to say.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;Hello hello hello!&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;I am so excited to be writing you this email. If I knew all your addresses and had a reel of stamps I would write this letter to each of you by hand just to express the degree of my happiness for you as you apply for the Flinn Scholarship. Only a year ago I was right where you were, on the receiving &amp;nbsp;end of this email, wanting so desperately to be the one writing next year&amp;rsquo;s. And here I am, a few weeks into my first year of college, loving life more than I ever expected. In between here and there, of course, there were hours of writing and revising, waiting-waiting-waiting, practicing interview questions with my parents in the long car rides to Central Phoenix, and one very happy phone call.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;It.is.so.completely.worth.it.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;If you are overwhelmed right now, that means you&amp;rsquo;re doing it right. You are ready for this &amp;ndash; entirely ready for the Flinn. Now your biggest task is to direct that brilliance. I&amp;rsquo;m sure that space to list activities and involvement on your application has you wondering what level of impressive they are looking for because you can only fill up half the spaces. To attack some of those blank spots on my application, I included &amp;ldquo;making claymations in high school&amp;rdquo; in my activities list. During my interview this came up and I got to spend 4 of my 20 minutes explaining the creative process of fashioning figures out of clay, the patience of taking 1,500 photos for a 5 minute clip, and my craziness to do this process multiple times. The moral of this vignette is not only that claymation movies are awesome and worth their time, but that Flinn cares about what makes you tick, what has you staying up till 3 am to get just-a-little-farther. You are not made up of the long list of activities you&amp;rsquo;ve ever considered, but the few interests you really care about.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;That&amp;rsquo;s why I chose to study in Arizona as a Flinn scholar &amp;ndash; this community invests in the interests I really care about. Before Flinn I wanted to go to the out of state liberal arts colleges: I was sure my heart belonged to Scripps or Kenyon College. But for me to study creative writing at these colleges, I would be accumulating a serious amount of debt before even embarking on my planned journey to medical school. With the Flinn, I can study creative writing while I prepare for med school, consider adding a double major in Global Health or Chinese, and hopefully spend a semester in Africa. The possibilities here are endless, being part of a community designed to fan your spark of passion into the brightest flame it can be.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;As you embark on this long and rigorous and rather scary application process, let that flame of passion guide you. Focus your brilliance. You got this.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;I can&amp;rsquo;t wait to write these letters with you next year. If not by hand, let&amp;rsquo;s track down a typewriter.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;Best,&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in; margin-bottom: .0001pt;"&gt;Annie Carson&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>In Their Own Words</author>
      <pubDate>2012-10-11</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/articles/3275</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Letter from a Flinn</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Scholar Jeannie Wilkening reassures us that radioactive spiders aren't necessary to become a Flinn. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"&gt;Dear Flinn Applicants,&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"&gt;My name is Jeannie Wilkening and I am a freshman Flinn Scholar majoring in Chemical Engineering. Just one year ago, I never would have imagined myself writing that sentence. &amp;nbsp;For a number of reasons, I was convinced that the Flinn was not for me. My only real motivation for even finishing the application was just to make my parents stop bothering me about it. Since you are all undoubtedly intelligent people, I am sure that you can tell things have changed since I submitted that application.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"&gt;Coming from a high school without many Flinns, I was sure that Flinn Scholars were all mythical super humans who were pretty much the closest thing to a real world Justice League. &amp;nbsp;Feeling that I was more ordinary than extraordinary, I didn&amp;rsquo;t think I stood a chance. After actually meeting Flinn Scholars, however, I can tell you that my original idea is only partially true. Yes, all the Flinn Scholars I have met are awesome people who do incredible things. They are, however, still human. All Flinns have awkward moments, make mistakes, and possess their fair share of faults. So if you are still looking for that radioactive spider to give you an edge in the application process, you can stop. We aren&amp;rsquo;t perfect. We aren&amp;rsquo;t good at everything. And we definitely would not be able to pull off all that spandex. Don&amp;rsquo;t worry about not having some fantastical achievement on your application. Just let them get to know the real you.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"&gt;The other main reason that I discounted the Flinn initially was that I was sure I did not want to stay in Arizona. I knew I wanted research experiences, access to faculty, and a challenging and stimulating academic environment. I thought the only way I could get that was to go out of state. As I went through the application process, however, I learned more about both myself and the opportunities available to me in Arizona. I could not be happier with my choice to stay. After only being on campus for six weeks, I have already discussed environmental issues with award-winning faculty, analyzed trace contaminants in water samples in a research lab I work in, and met countless other students who share my passion for learning. I have truly found everything I wanted and more right here in Arizona.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"&gt;For me, the Flinn application process was really about discovering more about myself, the Flinn community, and Arizona as a whole. I know the same will be true for you. Even if you aren&amp;rsquo;t sure the Flinn is right for you, I encourage you to finish the application. &amp;nbsp;Write the essays. Fill out the forms. Think about what you really want from your college experience and where you can find that. You might not change your mind, or you may be like me and realize what an incredible opportunity the Flinn Scholar program is. Either way, just do it and give yourself the opportunity to find out.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"&gt;Good luck,&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"&gt;Jeannie Wilkening&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>In Their Own Words</author>
      <pubDate>2012-10-10</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/articles/3272</link>
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      <title>Free advice! Writing application essays</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;We say this over and over again for a reason: The essays on the Flinn Scholarship application are well worth every second you spend on them.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;There's nowhere else in the application that you can do more to show reviewers who you really are. And believe me--the selection committee is not going to choose a Flinn Scholar designate whose personality and intellect remain opaque to them.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;What's the formula for writing a perfect essay? I can't tell you, because there's no such formula. There's no most appropriate structure, no ideal tone, no preferred focus. Unlike some of your assignments at school, you won't be able to earn a top score if you cover all the points I'm expecting you to cover with minimal spelling errors. We like accurate spelling, but we're not expecting that you cover any particular points.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;What are we looking for, then?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Thoughtfulness.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Honesty.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;A unique perspective.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;A memorable voice.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;A story so compelling that reviewers will say, "We have to meet this student."&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;All in 200 words? Sure. You can do it. Write a couple of drafts of each of your essays, without worrying about the length. If you have 400 or 500 words, you're in a wonderful position--you get to trim out the throat-clearing introduction, the irrelevant vignettes, the least-resonant lines.&amp;nbsp;What will be left, I hope, is a great story. Depending on the essay prompt, it may be a story about you, or a story about something in the world that matters to you.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;Want more help?&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;p&gt;There was a great blog post in the &lt;em&gt;Times&lt;/em&gt; this morning that you should read. It's "&lt;a href="http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/27/the-yellow-test/?hp" target="_blank"&gt;The Yellow Test&lt;/a&gt;," by Lee Gutkind, who lovers of good writing know as one of our foremost practitioners of narrative nonfiction. His post offers excellent advice about scenemaking in nonfiction writing. This is just what you want to be doing in your application essays.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;From Gutkind's post:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p style="padding-left: 30px;"&gt;Notice &amp;mdash; and this is critical &amp;mdash; that something happens, no matter how trivial, in each scene excerpted here. The beginning engages a reader, makes a promise. The end of the scene fulfills the promise and makes the audience want to know what will happen next, moving the action forward, ideally to another scene, another block of yellow, until the whole story is told and your point is established.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Do you know how much I'm looking forward to reading your essays? I'm really, really looking forward to it.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;(On a side note: You'll notice that Gutkind is right under your nose--teaching at Arizona State University. And one of the stories he excerpts is about the extraordinary clinical oncologist Daniel Von Hoff, previously director of the University of Arizona Cancer Center and now physician-in-chief at the Translational Genomics Research Institute in Phoenix. Like we always say, Arizona's universities possess some of the most amazing faculty talent in the world.)&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Matt Ellsworth</author>
      <pubDate>2012-08-28</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/articles/3271</link>
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      <title>Apply now for the 2013 Flinn Scholarship</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;Next spring, 20 of the most outstanding high-school seniors in Arizona will be selected as the 2013 Class of Flinn Scholars. Would you like to join this absolutely brilliant, fun-loving, globe-trotting community of young people ready to make a difference in the world? Then do it! Applications are due October 19.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Flinn Scholars</author>
      <pubDate>2012-08-27</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/news/1084</link>
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    <item>
      <title>On the Road 2012: Day Twenty Two</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Each summer an entire class of Flinn Scholars engages in a group  study-travel seminar. This year&amp;rsquo;s seminar, held in Hungary and western  Romania, runs from late in May to mid-June. Here&amp;rsquo;s a day-by-day account&lt;/em&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Olivia Marie Valencia (&amp;rsquo;11)&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Sunday, the final 24 hours of our nearly month-long trip, served as  the last ditch effort day for all the Budapest activities that we had  talked about but still hadn't gotten around to. The morning started with  the usual rummage for clean-enough clothes and a trip to the Hotel  Medosz breakfast buffet. Groups then splintered off and ventured here  and there in the hot and humid weather: some hunted for last minute  souvenirs, some relished gelato molded in the shape of roses, and some  took one last sight-seeing lap around the city.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;After an afternoon of hitting the pavement, we traded tank tops and  gym shorts for dresses and slacks and attended our farewell dinner. We  were hosted in a local art gallery and treated to live Hungarian-Spanish  flamenco music and tasty appetizers and entr&amp;eacute;es (buttered dough balls  and ginger ale, anyone?). As is tradition, Ben and Aubri then presented  us with our personalized certificates which ranged from the &amp;ldquo;first-world  daddy&amp;rdquo; award (Paul) to the &amp;ldquo;most unlikely to like rap music but  actually does&amp;rdquo; award (myself, as many of my fellow Flinns were surprised  to learn).&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Those who avoided a cr&amp;egrave;me br&amp;ucirc;l&amp;eacute;e coma (or those who succumbed and  woke up) wrapped up the night a &amp;ldquo;Fleepover&amp;rdquo; (a sleepover Flinn-style,  meaning polishing off the remaining cheese-flavored Lays chips and  Nutella in our pajamas). Conversations revolved around a month&amp;rsquo;s worth  of YouTube jokes (&amp;ldquo;put the team on your back!&amp;rdquo;) and the incredibly fast  pace of the trip. We mapped out the various post-Hungaromania travel  plans (train trips to Prague and flights to London and Benin) and began  our bittersweet goodbyes with those not leaving for Phoenix with the  group. One by one, we reluctantly trudged back to our rooms for a final  Battle of the Bulge with our overstuffed duffel bags. Although our hotel  departure was only two or three hours away, we set our alarms and took a  short nap before loading the bus for the last time.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Travel Dispatches</author>
      <pubDate>2012-06-17</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/articles/3241</link>
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    <item>
      <title>On the Road 2012: Day Twenty One</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Each summer an entire class of Flinn Scholars engages in a group  study-travel seminar. This year&amp;rsquo;s seminar, held in Hungary and western  Romania, runs from late in May to mid-June. Here&amp;rsquo;s a day-by-day account&lt;/em&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt; Amy Umaretiya (&amp;rsquo;11)&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Today started with a "find your own way" to the Sz&amp;eacute;chenyi Baths for  our first lecture. We heard about the magical healing powers of the  thermal water used in a lot of the baths in Hungary. Unfortunately, I  sat right in front of Aubri, who handed me the wonderful signed picture  of our class and the musical video postcard of Arizona that we had been  thanking all of our lecturers with, and my streak of avoiding being the  person who had to awkwardly present these gifts at the end of the  lecture finally ended.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;After the lecture we had free time, which most of us used to explore  the baths. Highlight: going into the 80-100 degree Celcius sauna room  with Julia and Van and then jumping into the 16 degree Celcius pool.  After making our way through the saunas, steam rooms, whirpools, and  pools of every temperature we left the bath house to go our separate  ways before the architecture tour we had later that day.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;That tour was by far the best one we had all trip. Our guide fully  explained the significance of the buildings and streets he took us to  see, but what's more is that he tied them all into our theme of  conflicts and resolutions. What stuck out the most to me was when we  came up to his favorite street in Budapest and he said, "Every building  on this street represents a different chapter in history." From baroque  to gothic to communist to art noveau, every style of architecture spoke  of a different mindset, time period, and story. That is a rare sight to  see where I'm from in Chandler, Arizona. Though I'm sure the Bashas',  Starbucks, and Wells Fargo buildings next to my house have some pretty  interesting stories behind them too.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;We ended up having dinner at an amazing restaurant after the tour was  over. Cary and I went on missions to hoard cherries from the bowl they  had on display and Olivia, Julia, Katherine and I had a great time  looking at the intricate cabinets. And then finally, at the end of the  night, Paul, Jacqui, and Patrick won the trip. Paul for his ability to  multitask, Jacqui for her ability to be flexible, and Patrick for his  ability to communicate with the group. All in all, a very good day!&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Travel Dispatches</author>
      <pubDate>2012-06-16</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/articles/3242</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>On the Road 2012: Day Twenty</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Each summer an entire class of Flinn Scholars engages in a group  study-travel seminar. This year&amp;rsquo;s seminar, held in Hungary and western  Romania, runs from late in May to mid-June. Here&amp;rsquo;s a day-by-day account&lt;/em&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Paul Thomson (&amp;rsquo;11)&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;You know, it's one of those things where you hear everyone say, "The  time flies by!" and, "It'll be over before you know it!" and you never  really believe them until you wake up one morning to sunshine streaming  through your window and the sound of a car alarm just outside and you  realize, "Hey! It's my blog day!" and then, "But I'm at the end of the  list!" and then, "Oh my gosh, we only have three days left." But, time  stops for no one on the Central European Seminar, and so it was with  this stunning realization that I greeted the day. Good morning!&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I am pleased to say that we are (finally!) back in Budapest at the  Medosz Hotel. This place, with its high pressure showers (except on  floor three...sorry, floor three) and its complimentary  towels/soap/shampoos/biscuits/fluffed pillows and its continental  breakfast to end all continental breakfasts, has become a sort of home  away from home on this trip. It's foreign, for sure, but a familiar kind  of foreign and I couldn't be happier about spending our last days here.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Today was a "back to business" day after the reprieve of yesterday's  transition, and when I checked my itinerary at breakfast like the  resourceful boy I am, I was somewhat distressed to read that we had not  one, but two lectures on MY blog day. Welcome back to Budapest! But, I  am overjoyed to say that my pessimism was proved a thousand times wrong  throughout the course of the day. The lectures were two of the most  fascinating--if totally dissimilar--lectures we have had thus far. The  first was given by Gabor Bojar, creator of a booming computer software  company called Graphisoft. Not only was homeboy successful like wow, but  he also knew how to give a quick, concise, and engaging lecture. The  business majors ate his entrepreneurial advice up, and the rest of us  were drawn into his "success is a competition" motto, too.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;We then met up with Geza Kallay for a crash course in Hungarian  literature, and--I have to tell you--this was one of my favorite  lectures so far. Actually, it's one of the only ones I haven't slept  through. No, I'm totally kidding. Kallay was not just knowledgeable, but  passionate. He was the kind of speaker that really gets to know his  audience and--in so doing--makes them want to listen. The fact that he  joined us for dinner and led a game of blind-telephone-short story was  only a testament to just how much he really cared about us as a class.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Now, I'm going to be real with you: I am not always the easiest to  please. I like my lectures fast but full, my meals nutritious but  delicious, and my days to be stimulating but relaxed. Well, I guess  today was my lucky day, because I genuinely enjoyed everything we did.  Now, I don't really know what tomorrow holds, but I know it's going to  be amazing. After all, you're only in Hungary once: YOHO!&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Travel Dispatches</author>
      <pubDate>2012-06-15</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/articles/3236</link>
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    <item>
      <title>On the Road 2012: Day Nineteen</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Each summer an entire class of Flinn Scholars engages in a group  study-travel seminar. This year&amp;rsquo;s seminar, held in Hungary and western  Romania, runs from late in May to mid-June. Here&amp;rsquo;s a day-by-day account&lt;/em&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt; Nick Synodis (&amp;rsquo;11)&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;As I write this, the musical stylings of the Dresch Dud&amp;aacute;s Mih&amp;aacute;ly  Quartett jazz up the confines of my comfy and cozy room at Hotel Medosz  in Budapest, thanks to my stop earlier today at the Great Hall, where I  picked up a metric megszents&amp;eacute;gtelen&amp;iacute;thetetlens&amp;eacute;gesked&amp;eacute;seitek&amp;eacute;rt*-ton of  souvenirs (including this CD) for myself and others. Today was a day of  transition: Traveling from Romania to Hungary, converting from RON  (Romanian New Lei) to Magnum Ice Cream (the official currency of  Hungary), and transferring hours on a bus to hours upon hours of  sleeping, eating Paprika-flavored Lay's potato chips, and playing "Who's  Your Daddy?".&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;That's right, today we left Romania. Mixed feelings there. On one  hand, Romanian currency looks fancy and Romanian restaurants serve  copious amounts of delicious mushrooms and veggies for us vegetarians;  on the other hand, everyone we met in Romania spoke Hungarian anyway (a  side-effect of being in Transylvania, known to Hungarians as "East  Hungary"), so it really wasn't much of a change. Nevertheless, it still  feels surreal** to only have 4 days left in Budapest. As we discussed in  our reflection session on the bus ride home (featuring questions such  as "What is your one traveler's 'bucket list' item you need to fulfill  before we return home?", "What do you plan to do with your free time in  Budapest?", and "What was the biggest surprise of this trip?"), there  simply are not enough hours left in the coming days to do everything we  want to do, yet, somehow, we have done more in the last 19 days than any  of us thought possible. Oh, and by the way, the "biggest surprise" of  the trip goes to the van on the highway earlier today that attempted a  U-turn (only to realize that the highway--surprise surprise--was split  by a median) and was almost demolished by our bus.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Transitions aside, today was also a day of dirt cheap falafel, a day  of picnicking on top of Gell&amp;eacute;rt Hill, a day of Julia cutting her hand  open with a multi-tool, and a day of late night*** shenanigans out on  the town. And on that note, I bid ye "sziasztok," as I just heard a  nasty high note on the CD I'm listening to, and it made me a bit queasy  (or maybe that's just the falafel).&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;*Hungarian for "due to your continuous pretending to be  indesecratable," but feel free to use your favorite four-letter word to  fill in the blank&lt;br /&gt; **Hungarian for "kinda sad"&lt;br /&gt; ***Hungarian for "ending before 12:45 a.m."&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Travel Dispatches</author>
      <pubDate>2012-06-14</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/articles/3235</link>
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    <item>
      <title>22 top Arizona students named Flinn Scholars</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;PHOENIX&amp;mdash;Twenty-two of Arizona&amp;rsquo;s most talented high-school seniors have been awarded the 2012 &lt;a href="http://www.flinnscholars.org/" target="popup"&gt;Flinn Scholarship&lt;/a&gt;, a comprehensive educational package at an Arizona public university that includes tuition, room and board, international study-related travel, and additional benefits.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Flinn Scholars</author>
      <pubDate>2012-04-25</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/news/1064</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>22 top Arizona students named Flinn Scholars</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;PHOENIX&amp;mdash;Twenty-two of Arizona&amp;rsquo;s most talented high-school seniors have been awarded the 2012 &lt;a href="http://www.flinnscholars.org/" target="popup"&gt;Flinn Scholarship&lt;/a&gt;, a comprehensive educational package at an Arizona public university that includes tuition, room and board, international study-related travel, and additional benefits.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Flinn Scholars</author>
      <pubDate>2012-04-25</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/news/1065</link>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Flinn Foundation Names Director of Flinn Scholars Program</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;Matt Ellsworth, a former Flinn Scholar and a five-year Flinn Foundation staff member, has been named the fourth director in the program&amp;rsquo;s 26-year history.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
      <author>Flinn Scholars</author>
      <pubDate>2012-03-08</pubDate>
      <link>http://flinnscholars.org/news/1060</link>
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