The Roanoke Kiwanis awarded $20,000 for six scholarships to high school seniors in May of this year. Scholarships are given to applicants from the six area high schools in which they sponsor. Clubs include William Fleming, Patrick Henry, Cave Spring, Hidden Valley, Northside, Roanoke Catholic School.
Students completed an application with a personal history, their expected field of interest for college, transcripts, and extracurricular and service activities. Applicants also provided letters of recommendation.
The Kiwanis Scholarship Committee read through all applications and scored them based on financial need, community service, and academic achievement. Six finalists were then interviewed by the committee.
Awards include the Franklin Award ($6,000) named for former Kiwanian Stu Franklin and his wife; the Henh Ly Award ($4,000) named for a Kiwanis Scholarship recipient who was tragically killed in the 2008 shootings at Virginia Tech; and four additional scholarship finalists were awarded $2,500 each. They especially want to thank their sponsor – Pinnacle Bank Financial Partners.
Elise Dearstyne — Dearstyne received the top award – the Stu and Margaret Franklin Scholarship of $6,000. She is a graduate of Roanoke Catholic School and will be attending Christopher Newport University in the fall.
William Xiao – Xiao is a graduate of Northside High School. He received the Hehn Ly Award of $4,000. He is going to attend the University of Virginia in the fall.
Whitney Xiao – McNulty is a graduate of Northside High School. She received a $2,500 Kiwanis scholarship sponsored by Pinnacle Bank Financial Partners and plans to attend Yale University.
Cameron McPhee – McPhee is a graduate of William Fleming High School. He received a $2,500 Kiwanis scholarship and will attend the University of Virginia.
Tamara Preston – Preston received a $2,500 Kiwanis scholarship. She is a graduate of William Fleming High School and plans to attend Virginia Commonwealth University.
Vicki Zou – Zou is a graduate of Northside High School. She received a Kiwanis Scholarship of $2,500 and plans to attend the University of Virginia.