Homeless Long Island teen gets State of the Union invite

Samantha Garvey has a 3.9 GPA. She's ranked among the top science students in the United States. And she's homeless.

The 18-year-old high-school senior from Long Island made headlines after it was discovered that the semifinalist in the Intel Science Talent Search was living in a homeless shelter with her family.

Garvey's family was evicted from their rental home on New Year's Eve. A car accident prevented her mother from working, and her cab-driving father was unable to pay the bills. They moved into a shelter.

She was selected for the prestigious science competition for her work with aquatic ecosystems:

"She spent more than two years researching the effects of the Asian short crab on the mussel population in a salt marsh on Long Island, east of New York City," the Associated Press reported.

As the story of Garvey's academic accomplishments spread, so did efforts to help the teen's family. Suffolk County officials have since helped the family "secure a three-bedroom, rent-subsidized home." They will move in later this month.

Her representative, Democrat Steve Israel, heard her story and offered her a ticket to the State of the Union address — "She is the epitome of the American dream. She worked hard and she is a story that I want to share with my colleagues and even with the president of the United States," he said — and Ellen Degeneres gifted the aspiring marine biologist a $50,000 scholarship to attend the college of her choice.

In March, Garvey will compete against 299 other top students for a chance at a $100,000 scholarship in the Intel Science Talent Search.

She has applied to Yale and Brown universities.