Paying for college
Scholarships
Previous winners of the Civic Leadership Scholarship
Each year a committee of campus and community representatives works to evaluate applications to find outstanding examples of civic leadership by high school seniors. Following is a list of previous recipients.
2012 winners
First place recipient: Caroline Patelli — Basehor, KS
Caroline is passionate about her local community of Leavenworth and is very involved
with the Historical Society and Main Street organization. Caroline has organized and
lead groups of volunteers to assist with restoration efforts of historical landmarks
in Leavenworth. She has also helped orchestrate community outreach efforts through
functions held at historical landmarks she helped restore. Caroline has been involved
in beautification projects and has raised money by organizing an annual Herb Market
and tour of local homes. She has used her artistic ability to create mosaic installations
in vacant lots and designed a new school flag for her elementary school. Caroline
has also organized holiday meals like the 7th Street Thanksgiving Dinner and ensured
a safe Halloween for children by leading the Trick or Treat Main Street Partnership.
Second place recipient: Elizabeth Stone — Middletown, PA
Elizabeth used her skills to help translate a French Canadian cookbook for the Villa
Louis State Historic Site in Wisconsin. The cookbook was originally published in Montreal
in 1865 and was one of the first French language cookbooks not exclusively dealing
with continental French cuisine. Elizabeth's goal is to translate all 752 recipes.
She has currently completed 511. Elizabeth has also spent a lot of time demonstrating
how to cook the translated recipes to the site director and staff that will use the
recipes in the future. Her work to translate the cookbook is helping others gain insight
in to what life was like for early settlers in the Villa Louis area.
Third place recipient: Emily Whitty — Kansas City, MO
Emily saw first-hand the difference a weighted blanket can make for an autistic child
when one helped her younger brother. Wanting to help other children with autism, Emily
contacted Project Linus and attended a sewing event to learn how to sew and make weighted
blankets. Emily coordinated a garage sale to raise money for supplies and had several
sewing events to teach others how to make the blankets. She also visited support groups
to educate others about weighted blankets. Emily donated 60 blankets to Project Linus.
She continues to make weighted blankets and deliver them to local elementary schools
and Children's Mercy.
2011 winners
First place recipient: Amy West — Westcliffe, CO
Upon moving to Westcliffe, CO, Amy never could have imagined the impact her involvement
in Girl Scouts would have on her new community and 30 young girls. Amy wanted to continue
her involvement in Girl Scouts, but soon realized there was not a Girl Scout Troop
in Westcliffe. Amy wanted to provide local young girls the same opportunities for
personal growth as she had. She began to develop a Girl Scout troop with the help
of many parents in the community. Amy devoted over 1,000 hours to developing a Girl
Scout program that would be sustainable. Because of Amy's hard work and determination
there are currently four troops in Westcliffe that she works with for an average of
three hours a week. Amy plans to continue to be involved with these Girl Scout Troops
from a distance.
Second place recipient: Landon Leiker — Marion, KS
Shortly after moving to Marion, Landon identified a project in the community. After
Landon began researching and learning more about the history of Marion County Park
and Lake he felt compelled to increase public awareness of the condition of the structures,
secure financial and labor resources necessary to refurbish the structures, and to
make people more knowledgeable about the history of the park and lake. Landon's project
began in 2006 and is still ongoing. Landon has educated community members about the
park and lake and organized spring work days to assist in the restoration of the park
for the last two years. Landon is confident that these days will continue after he
graduates.
Third place recipient: Julia Fuquay — Mooresville, NC
To make a difference and help underprivileged students, Julia organized a Back-to-School
Bash, which was an event where underprivileged students received free haircuts, book
bags, and school supplies. Julia was responsible for the organization and promotion
of the event, which provided new book bags and school supplies to over 2,000 Kindergarten
through twelfth grade students. Julia also worked with an organization that donated
a new pair of shoes for each of the students who attended. Julia is very committed
to staying involved in community service through working with animal missions and
environmental opportunities.
2010 winners
First place recipient: Reagan Kays — Weir, KS
Reagan wanted to educate his community on the importance of agriculture and the value
of it in our economy. To do this he developed a preschool agriculture education program
titled “Pre-K Agricultural Literacy.” This program teaches preschool children about
agriculture and its importance. Children affected by the program include at-risk children,
typically developing children, and special education children between the ages of
3-5. Reagan worked to bring age appropriate learning materials to these children and
hopes that by educating them and providing a positive role model example, he is able
to encourage these children to succeed.
Second place recipient: Jena Sauber — Assaria, KS
Jena had a goal to let patients at the Hospice of Salina and the children at St.
Jude's Hospital know that others cared about them. To do this she helped to organize
and sew over 350 pillow cases for the patients. Jena obtained donations, set up work
sites for sewing, and involved other community groups in the sewing. Jena reached
out to the 4-H groups and retirement communities for help in sewing the pillowcases.
Not only were the patients benefited by a bright colored pillowcase as a reminder
someone cares, but the community members participating in sewing enjoyed being able
to give back to others.
Third place recipient: Alexsis Fleener — Greensburg, KS
To educate her school and community on being environmentally friendly, Alexis co-founded
Greensburg Green Club. As part of her duties as co-founder, Alexsis helps to organize
recycling at the local elementary and high school as well as lead bi-monthly meetings
for the group. She also provides leadership by giving tours of Greensburg and highlighting
how the town has established environmentally friendly practices. Alexsis is able to
not only improve her community but also educate those in the community on how to make
a difference just like her.
2009 winners
First place recipient: Eli Logan — Manhattan, KS
Eli wanted his Eagle Scout project to recognize Riley County's history, government,
and community. To do this he oversaw the erection of a stone monument detailing the
history of the Riley County Courthouse. Eli provided leadership by supervising 20
of his fellow scouts while they prepared and landscaped the area. The monument now
informs those passing by the courthouse of its history and architectural significance.
This monument has inspired the City Historic Resources Board to continue recognizing
Riley County's history by erecting similar monuments throughout the city.
Second place recipient: Alana Rhone — Texarkana, TX
Alana wanted to empower citizens in her community for the 2008 election. She took
voter education training and volunteered at the local Democrat and Republican headquarters.
With this knowledge, Alana spread the word about the importance of voting and making
an informed decision. She assembled a group of twelve volunteers to help register
voters and disseminate sample ballots to educate voters on the candidates. Alana's
efforts resulted in a much higher voter turnout than in past years. She hopes to continue
to be involved in the political process as she studies Political Science or International
Affairs in college.
Third place recipient: Allison Straub — Hays, KS
Allison co-chaired an effort to bring funds and awareness to the Ronald McDonald
Houses in Wichita. Initially, Allison coordinated a Monopoly tournament fundraiser
held at the local McDonald's. Over $1,000 was raised for the Houses through donations
from local businesses. Allison raised awareness of the Houses and motivated the community
by personally conducting radio and television interviews to encourage individuals
to save pull tabs. Over two million pull tabs were collected equaling almost $1,300
that was donated to the Houses. Both of these donations allowed one family to stay
240 nights at the Houses free of charge. Allison's at large communication has raised
awareness in local businesses to the Hays Medical Center and plans are underway for
future projects.
2008 winners
First place recipient: Mark Sowers — Spring Hill, KS
Mark has found a way to apply the leadership skills he has gained through 4-H and
his church youth group. As a member of the Spring Hill Sesquicentennial Committee,
Mark's role is to represent the younger members of the community in the planning of
celebration events for this major community milestone. He has helped with fundraising
efforts and initiated an art and essay contest to involve grade school, middle school,
and high school aged students. An art show was hosted to showcase the work of the
community's youngest members. He is also participating as a student stakeholder in
evaluating the thirty-year land use plan for Spring Hill, a rapidly growing community.
Second place recipient: Cameron McGuire — Gardner, KS
Cameron created a photography service organization, PediaPix (Pediatrics + Photography).
The goal of his organization is to place photos taken by kids for kids in pediatric
areas of hospitals and clinics to help ease the anxieties of going to see a doctor.
He presented the idea to hospital administrators, established logistics for soliciting
and organizing submissions, and coordinated the selection of photos from the nearly
200 entries. He served as the liaison as he worked with hospital staff and youth photographers
to plan meetings and set deadlines. The future of this initiative includes adding
to the collection and rotating the art throughout the clinic.
Third place recipient: Sydney LeSage — Pretty Prairie, KS
As the organizer and manager of the first Cash and Cans Junior Golf Tournament, Sydney
wanted to create a fundraiser to benefit the Pretty Prairie Food Bank. She proposed
hosting a junior golf tournament to a local golf course manger, created rules for
the tournament, and advertised for youth golfers by posting flyers and writing an
article in the local newspaper. The tournament hosted 37 participants and generated
385 cans and $400 in donations. The food donation represents 30% of the food to be
distributed by the food bank this year and the organization was able to purchase perishable
food and gas vouchers for the first time with the cash donation.
Special award: Nicole Stieben — Bazine, KS
Since her high school consolidated with a school forty-five minutes away, Nicole
recognized an important need within her student body. It was suddenly difficult for
students to receive help from teachers because of the commute between students' homes
and their new high school. She provided leadership in meeting the need by organizing
a before and after school program for students who need extra help outside the classroom.
Students in need of tutoring contact Nicole who arranges a session with a peer tutor.
She is able to create opportunities for many students to receive the academic help
they need and to coordinate times for even the most involved student in her school.
2007 winners
First place recipient: Kyle Merklein — Prairie View, KS
Kyle's project involves serving as the only youth representative on the Discover
Phillips County Steering Committee. He has participated in a variety of efforts to
improve the quality of life in each of the seven towns in his county. His leadership
has been instrumental in planning the county-wide clean up in March of 2007. He has
assembled a labor force to provide assistance to the elderly and individuals with
disabilities in the beautification effort. Kyle has also used his passion for running
to help others by collecting pledges to run 30 miles across the county to raise funds
for the Phillips County Ministerial Alliance. He is committed to building pride in
his community and engaging others to help keep the county vibrant in an effort to
attract businesses and new residents. He believes that everyone has a gift that can
be used for service.
Second place recipient: Carrie Dotson — Andover, KS
Carrie is actively involved in the Just About Kids Foundation, a group she helped
establish. JAK is a non-profit charitable organization run by high school students.
One specific area of emphasis is helping to raise money for abused and neglected children's
charities around the Wichita area. She participated in the planning and completion
of the JAK 5k/1mile run and a car giveaway. Through the benefit run, Carrie has helped
her group to raise $15,000 for these charities. She also helps to spread the word
about the seriousness of the issue of child abuse and neglect. Wichita has several
very high poverty areas and Carrie says many people are surprised to learn the extent
of child abuse in Kansas and even in the small community of Andover. She realizes
that she was fortunate enough to grow up in a safe environment and she wants to help
provide that same environment for less fortunate children.
Third place recipient: Jacqueline Johnson — Overland Park, KS
It is a great thing to show others how exciting learning can be; Jacqueline is doing
just that. She is the president of the Faraday Society, a group of students who perform
theater science demonstrations for the community by presenting complex chemistry and
physics concepts in a simplified and easily accessible way. The troupe has performed
for thousands of people at elementary schools, banquets, science teacher conferences,
science fairs and community events. Jacqueline receives letters after their performances
from elementary aged students expressing their new-found interest in science and how
they want to grow up to be scientists, too. She views community service as an opportunity
rather than a responsibility, and sharing her passion for science is just one of the
many opportunities she has.
2006 winners
First place recipient: Maria Mai — Salina, KS
Maria has been very involved with Saline County Relay for Life all throughout high
school. Her freshman year, she was a team captain and created a team for the Saline
County Relay for Life. The following year, she also joined the Relay for Life committee
and was in charge of team recruitment for the entire Youth Relay for Life. Her junior
year, Maria became a co-chair for Youth Relay for Life where she had the responsibility
of looking over a selected amount of high schools and overseeing the committees. As
a senior, she is now the chair of the entire Saline County Relay for Life. Maria organizes
meetings and plans events for the committee. Her main goal is to help raise funds
for cancer research. Maria plans to continue her involvement with Relay for Life in
college by becoming a team captain and joining the planning committee.
Second place recipient: Mike Feldhausen — Frankfort, KS
Mike was a full time youth volunteer coordinator for the local recycling program
in his community. When the adult volunteer coordinator resigned, Mike took over the
majority of the coordinator duties. He ensured that a notice would be placed in the
local paper a week in advance and also ensured that a trailer would be supplied by
the county recycling program to be emptied monthly. Mike started the recycling program
at school to make people more aware of all the materials that can be recycled and
to show them how to help with the environment. Mike's leadership ability saved the
Frankfort recycling program from closing and has continued to get more families involved
in the program.
Third place recipient: Ryan Roberts — Pomona, KS
Ryan raised, trained, and socialized four dogs for the CARES, Inc. organization.
CARES, located in Concordia, Kansas, provides service dogs to individuals from all
over the world. Ryan's responsibility was to take the puppies and housebreak them,
teach them basic commands, love them, and most importantly, get them accustomed to
being around people in various social situations. Ryan wanted to use his training
skills to benefit others by improving their quality of life. He exposed the dogs to
as many social activities as he could to prepare them to serve their new owners in
any capacity. All four of the dogs Ryan trained are now serving their owners or the
general public in some way.
