Palos Verdes Student Among LA-Area Scholarship Recipients

PALOS VERDES, CA — One Palos Verdes student is among 11 Los Angeles-area scholars to receive a $10,000 scholarship for her work in STEM.

In a news release, Milken Scholars — which awards scholarships to college-bound students from Washington, D.C., New York and Los Angeles — said Abigail Maemoto of Palos Verdes is among the winners.

When Maemoto's assistant principal at Palos Verdes High School was diagnosed with leukemia, the student launched a community effort to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Maemoto organized a cancer walk, complete with corporate sponsors, and brought in $85,000.

According to the release, she also founded BiomediGirls, a student-run organization aimed at ending gender and socioeconomic disparities in science.

The organization helps pair students with free online courses and scholarships to participate in research internships.

As it stands, BiomediGirls now offers a newsletter and a podcast and has branches in 20 schools across the country and abroad.

Maemoto also used proceeds from her self-published childrens book, "What is so Special About an Unspecialized Cell" to fund six scholarships for students from low-income communities to attend a stem cell research program, Milken Scholars said.