Aldrich “Archy” Clark-Sanchez was in sixth grade when the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara first partnered with ExxonMobil to support students pursuing math- or science-related degrees. Now a freshman math major at Butte College, Archy is the latest recipient of the ExxonMobil Scholarship, though his interests extend far beyond multivariate calculus and the like.

As a student at Santa Maria High School, Archy was a member of the football team, and participated in the art and drama clubs. The Santa Maria Times photograph above depicts him with a tree mural he helped paint at the Santa Maria Town Center Mall in November 2016.

Archy also worked and contributed financially to his household throughout high school, in addition to serving as a teacher’s assistant and a student leader in Young Life, a youth outreach ministry. According to one of his Santa Maria High teachers, he was widely admired by classmates.

“ExxonMobil is committed to supporting the academic and leadership development of students in Santa Barbara County,” said ExxonMobil Regional Asset Manager Jing Wan. “Each year, we donate to the Scholarship Foundation to help young people chase their dreams of making a difference in this world.”

The ExxonMobil Scholarship benefits undergraduates pursuing math, science, engineering, or technology degrees at four-year universities. ExxonMobil has partnered with the Scholarship Foundation since 1994, providing more than $100,000 in support of post-secondary education in Santa Barbara.

“As a science- and technology-based company, we support STEM [science, technology, engineering, and mathematics] education because we believe it’s the key to progress, development, and economic growth,” said Dr. Wan.

It turns out ExxonMobil also supports young people of exceptional character.

Said Archy: “I want to return to Santa Maria and work at my high school in order to improve the lives of students there.”