(NAPSI)—On Tuesday, CME Group, the world’s leading derivatives exchange, presented 77 high school seniors with $1,000 college scholarship awards. The students were selected based on essays they wrote about innovation, as well as their academic standing and extracurricular activities.

“These scholarships demonstrate CME Group’s commitment to promoting education and innovation,” said Anita Liskey, CME Group’s Managing Director of Corporate Marketing and Communications. “As a company with a 170-year history in Illinois, it’s important to us to invest in and encourage the next generation of leaders in our community. We congratulate these talented students on their achievements.”

Since it was established in 1986, the CME Group Center for Innovation Mayoral Award for Student Achievement has awarded more than $1.4 million to approximately 1,700 high-achieving Chicago Public Schools students.

Four of the 77 students awarded scholarships this year were also chosen for summer internships at CME Group clearing firms: Phillip Alpern of Lane Tech College Prep High School, Jaiden Fallo of Walter Payton College Preparatory High School, Bailey Street of William Jones College Preparatory High School and Nicolas Xu of Northside College Preparatory High School.

For more information about the CME Group Center for Innovation Mayoral Award for Student Achievement, visit cmegroup.com/mayoralaward.

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