Meet McDaniel's newest Dorsey Scholars

Nataphali Speare is among the top students in his senior class at Frederick Douglass High School in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.

Speare is a member of his school’s International Baccalaureate program and is in the National Honor Society. He has previously participated in the newspaper club and mock trial club. He was also involved with the Tuskegee Airmen East Coast Chapter to explore his interest in aviation.

Additionally, he has participated in numerous volunteer experiences, including overseeing the donation of unwanted materials from his school to a local daycare and serving as a volunteer in a soup kitchen run by Bread for the City in Washington, D.C.

Speare is an incoming first-generation college student, who is interested in both economics and chemistry. He is also passionate about history, food science, and traveling. His long-term goal is to attend U.S. Air Force Officer School to become a special investigations officer, potentially focusing on economic crimes.

Sarah Ladley of Furlong, Pennsylvania, is a member of student council, National Honor Society, and Spanish National Honor Society at Central Bucks High School West. She also has a passion for literature and writing and is involved in her school’s book club.

During her sophomore year, she was selected to serve on the Superintendent Advisory Council through the Central Bucks School District.

She also held a donation drive at her school to collect luggage, backpacks, and other items for a local foster care organization to advocate for those less fortunate.

Ladley plans to major in Psychology at McDaniel and wants to go into the counseling field, a career path, she says, is inspired by her mother who is a school counselor.

Anna Furdui of Sykesville, Maryland, is involved with Liberty High School's Sources of Strength, a suicide prevention club, and is an active member of both the National Honor Society and National Art Honor Society. She also played soccer for the Freedom Soccer Club and has fostered kittens for the Carroll County Humane Society. During her freshman year of high school, she helped coach an elementary school team for the Carroll County Public Library’s “Battle of the Books.”

A published poet, she was recognized as a national winner by the “National Poetry Quarterly” for her poem titled “my father speaks with an accent,” about how others perceive her father who immigrated to the United States from Romania.

Furdui is the oldest of five and passionate about advocating for others. Through her adopted brother who has special needs, she became involved as a volunteer for the Keystone program, a ministry for youth with special needs, at Chapelgate Presbyterian Church in Marriottsville, Maryland.

She is currently interning with WES Pharma, a specialty pharmaceutical company in Westminster, Maryland, and is interested in studying Biochemistry and Biology at McDaniel to eventually go into researching drugs to treat rare disorders.

Lindsey Cruz-Gutierrez is among the top in her graduating class at Sherwood High School in Sandy Spring, Maryland.

She is a member of Sherwood’s National Honor Society and Model United Nations club. She has also played soccer for Montgomery Soccer Inc. (MSI).

Her experience volunteering at animal shelters has led her to major in Biology at McDaniel on the pre-veterinary track.

As the oldest of three and the first in her family to attend college, she said that she is excited for the opportunity to attend McDaniel and feels “extremely lucky to have been chosen [for the Dorsey Scholarship].”

Camille Coffey, who is graduating from Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, is a member of the Ingenuity Project, a specialized academic program for STEM at Poly, and has been involved in genetics research with the biology department at Johns Hopkins University.

She is also secretary of Poly’s class council, co-captain of the Ethics Bowl, and serves as a tour guide at the school, assisting with events and open houses for prospective students.

Coffey co-founded the Baltimore Student Union, a collective of Baltimore City Public Schools students who work to advocate for students attending City Schools. During her junior year, she participated in the Associated Student Congress of Baltimore City.

She is planning to major in Environmental Studies at McDaniel to combine the natural sciences with the humanities to provide a broad experience.

Camila Calero is a member of the International Baccalaureate program at Baltimore City College and serves as co-president of the Pueblo Latino cultural club. She is also a member of SOMOS (Students Organizing a Multicultural and Open Society) and helped start Intercambio, which supports students and their families to learn English.

As a youth grantmaker for Baltimore’s Promise, she has helped to allocate more than $1 million in funding for over 21 youth-led projects. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she was a youth health Latina ambassador for the Baltimore City Department of Health. She has also volunteered with Adelante Latina, Patterson Park Charter School, and Dent Education.

Additionally, Calero was selected as an Albrecht Fellow by the World Trade Center Institute and has participated in the RISE Leadership Program. She has accepted a summer internship with Baltimore City Councilwoman Odette Ramos.

An incoming first-generation college student, she said that she was drawn to McDaniel’s small, supportive community, where she will be able to explore new horizons and continue to grow.