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Cole Carnahan

3,915

Bold Points

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Finalist

1x

Winner

Bio

My name is Cole Carnahan. I am passionate about making a meaningful impact in the world and becoming a medical doctor! I attend Saint Mary's College of California where I am majoring in Biology(Pre-Med). I will be serving in the role of Resident Advisor for the 24/25 school year. I believe that giving back to humanity should be done with empathy, integrity, and excellence. I am a man of faith and I believe that God has great plans for my future! I want to practice medicine where my patients feel loved, a place of solace, and support despite being in a challenging situation. My family means the world to me! My family has lost many members to their fight once diagnosed with Cancer. Although I have not determined what type of doctor I want to be, I am considering orthopedic surgery, oncology, or mental health. I hope to practice medicine in an underserved community. My grandparents came to this country from Mexico and the Philippines with almost nothing but an American Dream. They lived in poverty, worked in the fields, and were illiterate. They could not see their American Dream come true, but it is being realized through me! *Education* Saint Mary's College, CA '27- 3.8GPA *BS Biology/Pre-Med Honors College De La Salle High School-Highest Honors 3.82 GPA *Lifetime Seal Bearer California Scholarship Fed. *CIF Baseball Scholar-Athlete & President's List *Scholarships Received* *Saint Mary's College Honors & Lasallian Leadership, Resident Advisor Grant *Joyce Raley-Teel Memorial *Deborah Thomas Memorial

Education

Saint Mary's College of California

Bachelor's degree program
2023 - 2027
  • Majors:
    • Medicine
    • Human Biology
    • Biological and Physical Sciences
  • Minors:
    • Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other
    • Human Biology
  • GPA:
    3.9

De La Salle High School

High School
2019 - 2023
  • GPA:
    3.8

Miscellaneous

  • Desired degree level:

    Bachelor's degree program

  • Graduate schools of interest:

  • Transfer schools of interest:

  • Majors of interest:

    • Biological and Physical Sciences
    • Medicine
  • Planning to go to medical school
  • Career

    • Dream career field:

      Medical Practice

    • Dream career goals:

      Medical Doctor: Oncologist, Surgeon, Orthopedic Surgeon, Mental Health Clinician

    • Resident Advisor: leader and residential staff living within the residence halls to build and maintain community; collaborates with departments/offices on campus to support residents, fosters inclusivity and promotes learning beyond the classroom.

      Saint Mary's College of California, Office of Residential Experience
      2024 – Present10 months

    Sports

    Baseball

    Club
    2016 – 20193 years

    Awards

    • Pacific Southwest Babe Ruth Regionals All Tournament Team

    Baseball

    Junior Varsity
    2020 – 20211 year

    Baseball

    Varsity
    2021 – 20232 years

    Awards

    • CIF scholar athlete
    • Nor Cal Champion
    • NCS Champion
    • CIF President's List

    Research

    • Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology

      Saint Mary's College — researcher
      2023 – Present
    • Biological and Physical Sciences

      Saint Mary's College of California — Lab Work
      2023 – Present
    • Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other

      DLS science — Lab leader
      2021 – 2022

    Arts

    • De La Salle

      Drawing
      2020 – 2021

    Public services

    • Volunteering

      Valley View Elementary School(Title 1 School, California 40 hours of Volunteering) — Help at-risk students and give back to the teachers and students of my previous elementary school. I supported needy students and help the staff.
      2024 – Present
    • Volunteering

      De La Salle High School Baseball Camps 260 hours(3 Summers of volunteering/ 4 hours/day for 4 Weeks)= — I dedicated 16 hours per week for 5 weeks(3 Summers) volunteering at my high school's community baseball camps. I helped mentor young students learning the game of baseball.
      2020 – 2023
    • Volunteering

      Open Heart Kitchen, Livermore — I have served my community at a food kitchen feeding, serving, greeting, cleaning. I also had the opportunity to visit with the needy, lonely and seniors.
      2019 – Present
    • Volunteering

      De La Salle learning Center( 3 hours per month for 2 academic years) — I was personally selected amongst 500 students to mentor and lead as Tutor in Spanish in the Learning Center of De La Salle High School.
      2021 – 2023
    • Volunteering

      De La Salle High School On Board Mentor(1 academic year of volunteering/ 2-3 hours weekly) — I was 1 of 15 selected amongst 750 students to mentor and lead incoming freshman and new students as they onboarded into my high school. I was later selected as a Leader for On Board.
      2021 – 2023
    • Volunteering

      Stanford Health Tri-Valley(116 hours of Volunteer Work in Physical Therapy, Rehabilitation, Speech and Heart Reahabilitation) — I spent my Summer helping patients, shadowing therapists, completing clerical work and supporting patients' rehabilitation.
      2023 – 2023
    • Volunteering

      Trinity Church(5 years/3 hours per week) Children's Ministry Leader — I dedicated my time to supporting children in my local church. I mentored young children in their walk with God and helped lead in Sunday Children's Worship)
      2015 – 2021

    Future Interests

    Advocacy

    Volunteering

    Philanthropy

    Entrepreneurship

    Cat Zingano Overcoming Loss Scholarship
    “You are enough, go after what is yours, you are loved.” Little did I know what those words would mean to me. Those were the last words spoken to me by my godfather and Uncle Clay. My name is Cole Carnahan and I am a 2nd year student at Saint Mary’s College of California. I’m pursuing a BS in Biology in hopes of becoming a doctor someday. I chose to apply for the Cat Zingano Scholarship because my family has been fighting for victory over death for the better part of 20 years. I come from a line of immigrants that came to America in hopes for a better life and a hope for tomorrow. My great-grandparents and grandparents harvested fruits and vegetables in the fields of the Central Valley of California. Education has not been at the heart of our family. My family picked in the fields because there were very few jobs uneducated immigrants could do in America. Poverty was all our family knew. My family planted, toiled and harvested foods so that others could eat. But what we did not realize until many years later is that although my family was planting the seeds of life for others, that work would also be planting the seeds of death in our family. Young bodies being exposed to pesticides and dangerous chemicals would later be the poison that plagued our family. My grandmother was the first to be diagnosed. Her cough would not subside and she continued to lose energy. She died of a rare form of lung cancer that took over her body and brain. She died just a few years before I was born. Next was my grandfather, he had a terrible burning sensation in his throat and would later be diagnosed with a rare form of esophageal cancer. He died just a few months later. Their deaths have truly taken so much joy out of my mother’s life, an only child and both of her parents gone. I know that my birth brought her out of the gloom that she felt for so many years of her life. I could never understand this pain that she was enduring. But that all changed my senior year of high school. I lost my uncle, my god father. He was larger than life! He was the heart of our family, our community. On so many occasions it was his voice that I heard from the stands during my baseball games. “You are enough.” What do those words mean to me? So many times I felt that I wasn’t enough, just a face in the crowd. But, something changed my perspective. God was whispering to me, go find him, you are enough. That was the day that I saved a friend’s life. He left our classroom, looking distraught and so many minutes passed. I looked at the clock, he had been gone for what seemed like an eternity. Something in my heart told me to rush up the three flights of stairs of our building. He was balancing on the edge of our building, ready to take his life. I yelled “You are enough, you are worth more than you know, you matter to me.” I prayed, he fell into my arms like a wet pair of jeans, I could feel his heart racing. That day changed me forever! Life is precious. That day I decided to change my life’s path, to help others, to be a changemaker. My family’s cancer journey is not over. My Uncle John had to have his stomach and part of his esophagus removed. I’m not sure how long he will be with us. I am not sure how our family will recover from this news! I find myself wondering who will be next in our family and think about preparing my heart for loss yet again. I feel in my soul that it is my destiny to end this pain in my family and others’ families. I am fighting to become an oncologist. Cancer has knocked out my family too many times! I feel in my heart that a cure for cancer is in my medical future. I know that my dreams are a HUGE sacrifice for my family. I am taking on a job at Saint Mary’s as a Resident Advisor. My commitment to others is why I was chosen to help our newest members join our college community. Please consider me for the Overcoming Loss Scholarship. I will make you proud, I will work hard and will FIGHT for my future! I am enough!