Photograph by Scott Lechner
Hot Dough: Jason Kim was surprised during class by a check from Papa John's Pizza's mascot.
Mr. Pizza delivers a $1,000 check to Del Mar High School student
Papa John's awards scholarship money to well-rounded class president
By Sarah Gaffney
Del Mar High School senior Jason Kim wasn't expecting a giant costumed slice of pizza to crash the fourth-period algebra class he was tutoring last Thursday, nor the $1,000 scholarship check tucked into the pizza box that Mr. Slice from Papa John's Pizza delivered to his desk.
"I didn't order a pizza," said the suspicious senior class president, as Papa John's store manager Ed Gagarin handed him a large pizza box.
What the college-bound student did do was apply for a $1,000 scholarship from the Papa John's Scholars Program last fall. When he opened the box and saw not a pepperoni pizza but a check, the confusion began to clear, and real boxes of pizza began to break open.
"I'm surprised," Kim laughed as his math-mates congratulated him and thanked him for the pizza being handed around after the sudden end of algebra class. "It's like, wow, I still can't believe it."
The Papa John's Scholars Program is celebrating its fourth year of awarding $1,000 scholarships to high school students across the United States. Papa John's new Willow Glen store awarded the scholarship to Kim from an applicant pool of almost 300 local graduating seniors. Each year, approximately 1,000 seniors nationwide are surprised with an impromptu pizza party and a check from Mr. Slice.
"This is the first scholarship that we as a franchisee have given out," say Ken Kaufman, whose family owns and operates the Willow Glen store. "I'm really looking forward to future years of doing this. Our goal is to get thousands of applications every year."
The scholarship selection committee, consisting of five people from the community, chose Kim from three finalists. "We had some really good applications," says Lorri Kaufman, one of the Willow Glen store owners. "It was actually a fabulous experience."
Unlike most college scholarships which focus on academic achievement, the Papa John's award seeks to identify and reward well-rounded students.
"We were looking for different things," Kaufman said. "Their creativity, their community involvement--basically, their quality, their character and what we thought they were going to bring to the world eventually."
Robin Walker, Del Mar's algebra teacher and scholarship coordinator, was responsible for devising a ruse to get Kim into her class during his typically free fourth period. An accomplished calculus student, Kim willingly agreed to help tutor Walker's junior algebra students.
"I was the only one who knew," says the first-year Del Mar teacher, who helped Kim apply for the scholarship. "All his teachers speak so highly of him. It's exciting that one of our students actually got this award."
Kim, who tutors elementary school children when he's not playing varsity volleyball, tennis or attending Key Club meetings, plans to use the scholarship money to help pay for his tuition at UC Davis, where he will major in business or economics beginning this fall. Of the many scholarships Kim has applied for, the Papa John's award was his first win.
But before he heads off to college, there's a summer of work awaiting for the graduating senior. Before leaving the pizza party to spread the news of his win, the industrious student approached Ken Kaufman. "I'll probably need a job this summer, also," he said.
"Give me a call," Kaufman replied, giving Kim a congratulatory handshake.
Campbell, California
