“I am beyond grateful to have been selected as a 2026 Coachtopia Scholar. Receiving such a recognition feels like validation of a belief I’ve held for quite some time with a car trunk full of donated test prep books: that sustainability isn’t just about what we save, but who we lift up in the process. I built Renewed Reviews Inc. because I firmly believe that education is the great equalizer of all. Economic hardships should never have a hand in someone’s ability to academically persevere. Circularity became my answer to that inequity, one refurbished book at a time. What excites me most about this scholarship isn’t the funding; it’s the community and motivation it fosters. Thank you, Coach Foundation, for empowering students to actualize their dreams and for proving that what we discard can be repurposed into something that lasts.”
Nicole Gullason
New York University · United States
Nicole Gullason is a presidential honors Biochemistry student at New York University, pursuing her bachelor's degree with a focus on environmentalism and structural biology. Raised with a deep connection to her Armenian heritage, Nicole carries her family's values of resourcefulness and care for community into her work. That spirit is what led her to found Renewed Reviews Inc., a NYS not-for-profit that collects, refurbishes, and redistributes test prep books to students across NYC, turning what would otherwise be discarded into opportunity. For Nicole, circularity isn't just an environmental principle; it's a way of honoring what's been given to her by making sure nothing, and no one, goes to waste. She hopes to grow Renewed Reviews into a model that other students and schools can replicate nationwide.