Two Wawasee students awarded with Lilly Endowment Community Scholarships
The Kosciusko County Community Foundation is pleased to announce the 2024 Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship recipients: Grant Krull and Allison Clark.
The Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship is a four-year, full-tuition scholarship that allows recipients from each participating Indiana county to attend an Indiana college or university of their choice. In Kosciusko County, the Community Foundation appoints a committee to lead a blind review process of all local applications.
GRANT KRULL
Grant Krull is a senior at Wawasee High School. He plans to major in mechatronics engineering technology and will graduate with honors in May 2024.
“When I first toured a college campus and saw the technology labs, where students prototype and build items for short term and multi-year projects, I knew that hands-on-learning, with real life applications, would be a perfect fit for me,” Grant wrote in one of his application essays. “It’s my plan to create simple, powerful, and intelligent systems in the agriculture, biotech, or homeland security systems to build the best place to live possible,” he said.
Grant attributes much of his character to how he was raised. “My first recollection of doing something for others without getting anything tangible back in return is of carrying milk cartons into elderly community members homes, as part of my mom’s Meals on Wheels route.”
He has been an active community member as a volunteer with Camp Mack, a 10-year member of 4-H, Swaggers Youth Group, Wawasee FFA, and Kosciusko Junior Leaders. He was a member of various Wawasee High School extracurriculars including the Super Mileage Team, Iron Pride VEX Robotics, Thespian Troupe, Academic Super Bowl, National Honor Society, Cheer Squad, Unified Football and Track teams, Swim Team, and FFA.
Grant was celebrated with a surprise award ceremony on December 12 at Wawasee High School.
ALLISON CLARK
Allison is a senior at Wawasee High School. She plans to major in biology and will graduate with honors in May 2024.
“With every new discovery, new medicines are made, new ways to preserve relationships between species are discovered, and new ways to view the beauty around us are being used. To be able to say you made a difference in the world, no matter how small, is a remarkable feat and one that I hope to accomplish,” Allison wrote in one of her application essays.
Allison remembers hearing “you can be anything you want to be” during her childhood years. She knows today that the smallest gestures can leave a big impact. “I will continue to do the small tasks because every piece matters and pushing for change starts one person at a time,” she said.
She has been active in various community service initiatives including the North Webster Church of God, Kosciusko Youth Leadership Academy, and Warsaw Adult Education. In addition, she was a member of the Wawasee Tennis Team, Book Club, Robotics Team, Academic Super Bowl, National Honor Society, Key Club, Environmental Club and FFA.
Allison was celebrated with a surprise award ceremony on December 12 at Wawasee High School.
How Lilly Endowment Community Scholars are selected
Each Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship provides full tuition, fees, and an allocation for books and equipment for four years of full-time undergraduate study at any eligible Indiana public or private nonprofit college or university.
The Kosciusko County selection process for the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship begins at the Community Foundation. Scholarship reviewers evaluate each application without access to the students’ names or other identifying information. Qualifying criteria include academic excellence, community service, extracurricular involvement, work experience, references and essay responses.
Once the committee selects the finalists, the Community Foundation submits these applicants to Independent College of Indiana (ICI), the statewide administrator of the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship program.
Annually since 1998, Lilly Endowment Inc. has funded the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarships to help Hoosier students reach higher levels of education in the belief that education is indispensable to the personal, civic, and economic well-being of Indiana communities and residents. Lilly Endowment Inc. is an Indianapolis-based philanthropic foundation created in 1937 by members of the Lilly family through stock gifts of their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. Lilly Endowment Inc. supports community development, education, youth, and religion.