The Suffolk Foundation has announced that Kristina Lynelle Super is the winner of the 2015 Howard D. Mast Memorial Scholarship. Super, a Nansemond River High School senior, is the daughter of Jeffrey and Alison Super.

Michelle Waller presented the $5,000 Mast Memorial Scholarship on behalf of the Suffolk Foundation to Super at the school’s awards assembly on May 20.

The Mast Scholarship honors Howard D. Mast, who served as Suffolk’s parks and recreation director from 1949 to 1966. He was known throughout the region as “Mr. Tennis” and was elected to the Mid-Atlantic Tennis Foundation Hall of Fame in 1995.

Mast was a mentor, teacher, coach and friend to thousands of youth and adults in Suffolk and throughout the commonwealth.

The scholarship award committee was especially impressed with Super’s pursuits in the Project Lead the Way Engineering Program at NRHS. Her and her team’s work on their reverse engineering project tested their mettle. The committee also took notice of her decision to seek a degree in environmental science from Virginia Tech. Mast also earned an engineering degree from Virginia Tech.

Super also participated in many school activities. She was elected as president of the NRHS chapter of the National Honor Society, was an active member in the Beta Club, a member of the Student Council, selected as the Female Ambassador of NRHS, was varsity cheer captain — and while doing all that and more was able to attain great academic success. Her community service has been extensive, too.

Super is a soprano singer in the Suffolk Presbyterian Choir and a participant in its Young Life organization. In one of Super’s reference letters, the author, who has known her for years and is himself the recipient of a Ph.D. in electrical engineering, stated, “Without question, Kristina has the intellect, strength of character, leadership potential and ‘spark’ to thrive in any demanding college curriculum, and I should add, into postgraduate studies as well.”

Super will be an honor graduate and has been accepted and plans to attend Virginia Tech in the fall. The $5,000 Scholarship award will be sent directly to Virginia Tech.

The Howard D. Mast Memorial Scholarship Award Committee said it was again able to double the normal $2,500 award to $5,000 in 2015 through a gift of Tom Bell of Atlanta, who grew up in Suffolk and was one of the many young beneficiaries of Mast’s tennis and other programs. An anonymous donor has contributed $10,000 to double the normal $2,500 award to $5,000 for the 2016 through 2019 awards.