Lauren Elizabeth Seale has been awarded this year’s Ann MacPherson Weaver Memorial Scholarship at Rocky Mount Academy.

An eighth-grader at G.R. Edwards Middle School, Seale will attend RMA in the fall on a full-tuition scholarship, valued at more than $45,000 for four years.

“We are delighted to welcome Lauren and her family to Rocky Mount Academy,” Head of School Beth Covolo said. “Her commitment to academics combined with her strength of character and service to the Rocky Mount community make her a great fit for our student body. I look forward to watching her grow and thrive here over the next four years.”

The Weaver Scholarship was established at Rocky Mount Academy in 1986 in memory of a 1984 RMA graduate who had succumbed to cancer earlier that year. The scholarship is awarded to a deserving student who has never attended RMA and who best represents the attributes that Ann Weaver embodied.

“We had a strong group of students interested in the scholarship this year,” said Lynn Ives, chairwoman of the Scholarship Committee. “The competition was tough, and all the finalists are outstanding young people. Of the candidates, Lauren seemed to most clearly reflect Ann’s image. She is an outstanding student, she has a great personality and is a proven leader who has already contributed her talents to this community.”

The daughter of Roger and Dionne Seale, Seale is a straight-A student. She has participated in the Duke TIP program, and she scored in the top 5 percent in the nation on the SAT. She has been involved in many school activities including Math Counts, Battle of the Books, and the Junior Beta Club. Seale was co-captain of the tennis team, a Piano Guild National Winner, and a Piano Olympics Participant. She has spent many hours in the community volunteering her time with the Tar River Children’s Chorus, Salvation Army, Gatekeepers, and Vacation Bible School.

“We look forward to her sharing her gifts with us at RMA over the next four years,” Ives said. “We had the difficult assignment of selecting just one student to receive the scholarship, and we are proud to have selected Lauren.”