Melvin Cambi (back left) from Bonner & Prendie and Johani Cooper (center front) from West Catholic join fellow Philadelphia students in Sixers jerseys while attending Space Camp, thanks to scholarships from the Paul George and Tiger Woods Foundations. (Courtesy Photo)

By Elena Perri • Posted October 9, 2025

Teeing up educational opportunities for young people and giving them a shot at exploring STEM careers is the purpose behind the partnership between the Paul George Foundation and the Tiger Woods Foundation. George, a Philadelphia 76er, joined forces with Woods to support students through scholarships to Space Camp.

Through this partnership, Melvin Cambi, a junior at Monsignor Bonner and Archbishop Prendergast High School in Drexel Hill, and Johani Cooper, a junior at West Catholic Preparatory School in West Philadelphia, received scholarships to attend the Advanced Space Academy in Huntsville, Alabama, earlier this summer. They were among five Philadelphia-area high school students who participated in the space camp, thanks to funding from the foundations.

The Tiger Woods Foundation recently held the grand opening of the Smilow Woodland TGR Learning Lab at Cobbs Creek Golf and Education Campus in West Philadelphia. The 30,000-square-foot lab offers educational enrichment programs for students in  grades one through twelve.

John Cooke, president of Bonner & Prendie, said Woods’ foundation has been partnering with the high school, West Catholic, and local grade schools for more than a year.

“Before they officially opened the lab, they invited our students to do some activities over there,” Cooke said. “All summer long people in the community could go there and sign up for different classes.”

According to the foundation, the lab has served more than 1,000 students who have received tutoring assistance and attended after-school classes and college and career readiness workshops.

“They’re really focused on after-school activities, so students can go to the learning lab and hang out and do stuff related to STEM,” Cooke said.

Cambi, who is interested in studying engineering in college, is grateful he had the opportunity to attend the space academy.

“It helped me learn about the different types of engineering,” he said. “I want to do something in engineering field, but I haven’t made a final decision yet.”

Melvin Cambi (right), a junior at Bonner & Prendie, poses with a fellow Space Camp attendee beneath a rocket at the Advanced Space Academy in Huntsville, Alabama. (Courtesy Photo)

When Cambi heard about the foundations, he was surprised that Woods and George were interested in providing educational opportunities for young people.

“It’s amazing that even though they’re not really in the field of education, they want to give kids the chance to experience space camp and explore different career paths,” said Cambi, who graduated from St. Lawrence School in Upper Darby, and earned a Connelly Foundation scholarship to attend Bonner & Prendie.

His AP seminar teacher encouraged him to apply for the Space Academy scholarship because of his high grades in the class.

“It was amazing that I got to experience all of that,” Cambi said. “I had a fun time there.”

The opportunity to travel outside of Philadelphia was a highlight for Cambi.

“I’ve never been out of state, and it was amazing to meet new people,” he said.

Activities during the weeklong academy included building homemade rockets and conducting experiments.

“We had to put an egg inside of the rocket and see if the egg would survive the parachute landing,” Cambi said. “Our egg didn’t survive though.”

For Johani Cooper, the best part of Space Academy was participating in a simulated space flight.

“I will never forget our three-hour mission,” Cooper said. “It teaches you about problem solving and how to calm people down. There were so many anomalies, and it broadened my eyes by seeing all the details it takes to go to space.”

Another benefit of the camp was that it helped Cooper to clarify her college major.

“I always wanted to be an engineer, but the camp really set me up to know that I want to do mechanical engineering,” she said.

Both Cambi and Cooper appreciate the efforts of Woods and George to inspire young people and broaden their horizons.

“It’s amazing to me that they give students an opportunity to go an extra step further and help make a career for themselves,” Cambi said.

“I think it’s a great way to give kids new experiences in life,” Cooper added. “The fact that you get to go and learn cool things is amazing.”