Springdale student recipient of prestigious Schulich Leader Scholarship

Shiloh Burton missed what might have been the most important phone call of his life. 
On the other end of that missed connection was a representative from the Schulich Leader Scholarship who had some good news. And the 17-year-old Indian River High student didn’t feel his phone buzz. 
He was oblivious until his mother texted him. The representative had called her and she relayed the message. 
Burton figured he had missed a part of the application. He had no idea what was in store for him when he called the number back. 
That is when Burton, of Springdale, was told he was the winner of the $100,000 Schulich Leader Scholarship in engineering. 
He heard that part – he didn’t hear anything else as his mind went blank and his concentration wavered. 
“My legs almost gave out,” he said of hearing the news. “I was content with having my name on the website. 
“I never thought I’d get it.” 
The Schulich Leader Scholarships awarded to high school graduates with plans to enrol in either science, technology, engineering or math post-secondary programs at 20 partner universities across Canada. There are 50 such scholarships given out with 25 designated for engineering scholarships; the other 25 cover scholarships in science and math. 
The engineering scholarships are worth $100,000 and the others are worth $80,000. 
Burton is one of two students from this province to receive the scholarship. The other is Kendra Burden from Port Hope Simpson who was awarded $80,000. 
That's an incredible amount for a student to have as they get ready to start the next chapter in their scholastic careers. 
Especially at a time when student debt is at an all-time high. According to a recent report by the Canadian Federation of Students, Canadian students owe some $28 billion in student loans. 
For Burton, the scholarship allows him to focus on school, rather than worry about how he is going to make everything work financially. 
Part of that focus will be deciding where he wants to take his engineering studies when he enrols at Memorial University in the fall. 
Initially, Burton had always planned to pursue mechanical engineering. Then, he took part in a robotics class and he enjoyed that. 
His teacher suggested computer engineering might be a better fit for him. Burton thought maybe that would be how he
would go. 
Again, his focus might have shifted when he job shadowed a civil engineer a couple of months ago. 
A portion of the Schulich asks prospective recipients to list three times they achieved a goal. 
Burton reached into the recesses of his mind for one of this goals. 
He remembered a time in the summer of 2013 or 2014.
His father had plenty of lumber lying around and the pair decided to build the family cabin near Springdale. 
Burton helped with every aspect of the build. 
"It really opened my eyes to what I can achieve when I put my mind to it,” he said. 
Judging by the Schulich Scholarship, Burton will have many more opportunities to see what he can achieve in the future.