ATLANTA (May 20, 2025) – GPS Hospitality, the second-largest Burger King franchisee with close to 400 Burger King restaurants, announced today it has awarded Burger King Foundation scholarships to 116 students. The winners were chosen from communities where GPS’ restaurants are located, including Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and West Virginia. The scholars were granted $1,000 each, with a special award of $5,000 for Kendall Knox in St. Claire, Michigan as the regional employee winner for the Midwest. Since 2013, GPS Hospitality has supported over 2,000 scholars, totaling nearly $2.2 million in giving for employees and high school seniors to continue their educational journey.

Burger King Foundation scholarships are awarded to graduating high school seniors based on their grade-point average and the impact the applicants have on their schools and communities through volunteerism and work experience. Burger King employees and their family members pursuing traditional post-secondary education or enrichment programs are also eligible to apply.

“We view education as a vital part of building our future leaders and GPS Hospitality has made it part of our mission to support their journey,” said Michael Lippert, President of GPS Hospitality. “It’s an honor to have the opportunity to offer these scholarships through this partnership with the Burger King Foundation to once again help empower both our team members and aspiring students nationwide to reach their goals.”

Founded in 2000, the Foundation has awarded more than $64 million in scholarships to over 55,000 students. The Burger King Foundation Scholarship program is the Burger King Foundation’s flagship program, established to honor the legacy of the Burger King brand’s co-founder, James W. McLamore, whose commitment to philanthropy and education made him a pillar of community service throughout his lifetime. The Burger King brand is owned by Restaurant Brands International Inc., one of the world’s largest quick-service restaurant companies.

The 2025 Burger King Foundation Scholarship recipients are:

• Jacob Garner, AL
• William Garner, AL
• Trevion Wilson, AL
• Hayley Ely, AL
• Christin Mitchell, AL
• Xayvion Coleman, AL
• Emily Baugh, AL
• Molly Pettis, AL
• Hailey Walker, AL
• Kali Snow-Katz, AL
• Jayla Smith, AL
• Hannah Flood, AL
• Serenity Russell, GA
• Brody Gillum, GA
• Nicole Smith, GA
• Paige Jones, GA
• Addison Grier, GA
• Kalaya Jones, GA
• Fabian Nunez, GA
• Akiye Scott, GA
• Diego Valencia De Luna, GA
• Danielle Smith, GA
• Ryan Smith, GA
• Michael Connolly, GA
• Gustavo Francisco, GA
• Anthony Dye, GA
• Talia Baker, GA
• Tari Baker, GA
• Mahmud Suleman, GA
• Kelis Bess, GA
• Emily Alvarez Ramos, GA
• Zennai Dwyer, GA
• Giselle Armes, GA
• Jackson Newcomb, GA
• Tavon Carson, GA
• Sah’Quarion Howard, GA
• Brianna Paredes, GA
• Minh Ho, GA
• Amirion Cummings, GA
• Aidan Hickman, GA
• Isaiah Moore, GA
• Aubrey Nizigiyimana, GA
• Godfrey Mhlanga, GA
• Destinee Beavers, GA
• Sofia Castillo, GA
• Kayla-Renae Smith, GA
• Nkosi Sutherland, GA
• Davis Dufrene, GA
• Aliyah Lee, GA
• Imani Kelly, LA
• Benicia Johnson, LA
• Kayden Augustine, LA
• Ryan Trahan, LA
• Ally Franks, LA
• Robert House, LA
• Seth Holmes, LA
• Trinity Phoenix, LA
• William Davis, LA
• Joseph Jackson Jr, LA
• Ce’Nya Cahee, LA
• Ja’ir Richardson, LA
• Alaina Sauvage, LA
• Elizabeth Gregg, LA
• Nahdia Pifer, LA
• Peter Price, LA
• Kayden Dempster, LA
• Marian Akinsoji, LA
• Ethan Alonso, LA
• Kylee Hebert, LA
• Breana Ray, LA
• Lyric Jones, LA
• Kamea Stewart, LA
• Titan Breaux, LA
• Alexandru Hecht, LA
• Kamryn Richardson, LA
• Hannah Cheeseman, LA
• Colton Liscum, LA
• Laila Alexis, LA
• Anna Ren, MD
• Keimara Johnson, MD
• Peyton Blocher, MD
• Kendall Knox, MI
• Matthew Perry, MI
• Jasmin Lange, MI
• Lucas Kidd, MI
• Justin Railey, MI
• Noah Vetter, MI
• Hao Do, MI
• Mackenzie Swan, MI
• Kennedy Mullens, MI
• Reva Setty, MI
• John Budd, MI
• Chelsea Stout, MI
• Amyiah Montgomery, MS
• Darion Lewis, MS
• Lindsay Adams, MS
• Madeline Ory, MS
• Kamya Jones, MS
• Jeremiah Parker, MS
• Markell Cofer-Williams, MS
• David Giles, PA
• Tanner Cooke, PA
• Eliezer Carrazco, PA
• Miriam Fedday, PA
• Lukas McNamara, PA
• Nayeli Severino, PA
• Kathy Chen, PA
• Carson Zook, PA
• Landon Webb, PA
• Savannah Diliberto, TN
• Chance Cox, TN
• David Hollis, TN
• Jenna Brown, TN
• Molly Korn, WV
• Tristan Wolford, WV
• Dominick Robinson, WV
• Antonio Robinson, WV
• Brynly Richards, WV
  

For more information on the program, visit www.burgerkingfoundation.org/

###

About GPS Hospitality
Founded in 2012, GPS Hospitality is a BURGER KING® and Popeyes® Louisiana Kitchen franchisee, operating more than 410 restaurants in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and West Virginia. GPS Hospitality seeks to become guests’ favorite QSR destination by implementing its brand values of being Goal Focused, People Oriented and Service Obsessed. For more information, please visit www.gpshospitality.com and connect LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and X.

About the Burger King℠ Foundation
Inspired by Burger King® Restaurant’s co-founder, Jim McLamore, the Burger King ℠ Foundation creates brighter futures by empowering our communities and BK team members through education and emergency relief. We believe with education you can explore your full potential and live life your way. Through our scholarships and learning resources, we empower the next generation to kickstart their educational and career pathways. To learn more, visit www.burgerkingfoundation.org

About BURGER KING®

Founded in 1954, the Burger King® brand is a global quick service hamburger chain known for food quality and value and as the only place guests can get the iconic flame-grilled Whopper® sandwich. The Burger King system operates more than 19,000 locations in more than 120 countries and U.S. territories. Nearly all Burger King® restaurants are owned and operated by independent franchisees, many of them family-owned operations that have been in business for decades. To learn more about the Burger King brand, please visit the official brand website at www.bk.com or the newsroom at news.bk.com, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, X and TikTok.