Bermuda's brightest young graduates were praised by two Government Ministers as they lined up to receive scholarships worth $75,000 each.

Deputy Premier Ewart Brown and Education Minister Terry Lister told a press conference at the Senate this week how proud they were of this year's eight Bermuda Scholars.

The youngsters ? all of whom have excelled academically and contributed to their community ? will each receive Government grants of $25,000 annually for three years to help them continue their studies.

Mr. Lister told the students: "You are here today because you encompass those qualities that exemplify what we want all Bermudian students to be renowned for.

"You have a strong history of academic success, you have demonstrated a willingness to give back to your community through various forms of community service and you have already settled on, and committed to, your career aspirations."

Dr. Brown said: "We are collectively proud of all of you. I keep a file at home called 'Young Stars' and each one of you is in that file."

He added: "We expect a lot from these young people. Our job is to get them prepared to go out into the world and make a mark for themselves and hopefully a mark for Bermuda. We are very impressed with these young people."

This year's scholars included two 18-year-old sisters ? Meliseanna and Mystere Gibbons, of Warwick ? who are both headed to the US to study for biology degrees.

Meliseanna said: "I feel very honoured that both my sister and I would be recipients of this scholarship."

Their father, Dr. Sydney Gibbons, added: "I feel relieved and honoured and satisfied because they really worked hard. They were very focused and I think they deserve what they received."

Two of this year's scholars ? Chardala Simons, 19, and 20-year-old Attiya Talbot ? are from the Island's public senior schools. Chardala, a 2004 graduate of CedarBridge Academy, is heading to Mount St. Vincent University, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, to complete her degree in applied arts.

Attiya, a 2004 graduate of Berkeley Institute from Smith's, begins a medicine degree at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland in September.

Mr. Lister said he was sure that future years would see more scholars from public schools.

His niece, Genee Lassalle-Lister, 18, who graduated from Bermuda High School for Girls, was another scholar. Mr. Lister said: "There will be some that say this young lady got this because she's my niece." He said the real reason was her high grade point average. Genee is going to Hampton University, in Virginia, to continue her nursing degree.

Dantae Williams, 22, of Pembroke, was the third son in his family to win one of the Government scholarships. Shammah, 20, and Nevin, 24, had previously picked up the awards. Dantae, a Bermuda Institute graduate, will begin studying law at the University of Kent in Canterbury, England, in September.

The other two scholars were James Foster, 19, from Pembroke, a graduate of Saltus Grammar School, who will begin a classics degree at University College London in September and Edward Moore, 18, of Warwick, a graduate of Warwick Academy who plans to study civil engineering at Ryerson University in Toronto.

Scholarships for $10,000 annually for three years will be handed out next week to mature students and those planning to enter teaching.