A Spark For Learning
In the ninth grade, Kai Cockrell snuck into a college-level biology class. It was here that Kai realized this was where he belonged. Even though he wasn’t on that class roll, the spark to learn more about the human body was ignited.
Kai grew up in West Jordan, Utah, and is currently a senior in high school. When he’s not taking the remaining high school classes for graduation, he’s at SLCC in the early enrollment program for surgical technology. “I’m fascinated by blood and guts,” he jokes. “But really, this is the only field that I’m passionate about and want to learn more.”
“At the beginning of my first semester in the surg tech program, my professor told the class about the Metallica Scholars Initiative scholarship,” said Kai. “I saw this as an opportunity to relieve some financial stress, so I applied. When I found out I had been awarded, I was shocked! I didn’t realize it was going to cover so much of my tuition!”
The Metallica Scholars Initiative, through Metallica’s foundation, All Within My Hands, helps students who take early enrollment classes at SLCC and those who take the traditional college path pay for tuition, school fees and the tools required to complete the surgical technology degree program.
Kai will graduate high school in May 2024 and in January 2025 with an Associate of Applied Science (AAS) in surgical technology. After SLCC, Kai hopes to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. When he returns, he plans to continue his education at a four-year university and study to become a surgical assistant or surgeon, a dream that the Metallica scholarship has made more attainable.
“I want to thank Metallica for giving me this opportunity,” said Kai. “I am so grateful because I wouldn’t be where I’m at today without their help. Because of this scholarship, I can get a degree while I’m still in high school rather than having to wait until after I graduate. And I have so many plans after school to learn and grow as a person.”