The CSF team embarked on its own trips throughout the country to celebrate the 2026 Carson Scholars across six regional banquets. 

Scholars from 29 states traveled near or far to attend a banquet this spring where there was much to celebrate.  In addition to commemorating the Carson Scholars Fund’s 30th anniversary of awarding scholarships, the remarkable accomplishments of 1,700 Carson Scholars were applauded by donors, CSF board members, educators and families.

In total, 2,900 guests showed up to hear words of wisdom from Dr. Carson’s keynote address.  At the West Palm Beach banquet, David Rone, Managing Partner at Guggenheim Partners, was honored with the Spirit of Achievement award in recognition of his work, professionally and personally, to improve society.  The Trailblazer Award was presented to Biju Kulathakal at the Maryland banquet in honor of his pioneering spirit and innovative ideas in tech and AI fields that have positively impacted society.

Check out banquet photos here.

“The strength and support I have received from my family and the Carson community as a whole have made me infinitely better. Listening to Dr. Carson speak about our responsibility to be upstanding individuals and take ownership of ourselves has stuck with me. Carson Scholars never give up, no matter the difficulty. Basically, I wanted to say thank you. Thank you for seeing something in me six years ago that I wasn’t aware of yet. Thank you for giving me the strength and resolve to grow and continue to develop my confidence and talents. Thank you for giving me a bar against which to measure myself (the other Carson Scholars) and a plateau to strive for. Thank you for selecting me as a Carson Scholar. ” – Adeline Shertzer, 6-time Carson Scholar