Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program

The Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship will open in August 2021.

The Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program (LECSP) awards full-tuition scholarships to students from each county in Indiana.

Eligibility:

Students must be Greene County residents at the time of application
Applicants must be high school seniors graduating by June 30, 2022
Applicants must have a high school diploma from an Indiana high school accredited by the State Board of Education or by a national or regional accreditation agency that is recognized by the State Board of Education
Recipients must pursue undergraduate study in a baccalaureate program on a full-time basis
Recipients may attend any accredited public or private four-year college or university in Indiana

Benefits:

One scholarship will be awarded to Greene County residents
Pays full tuition and required fees for four years; no re-application process is required
$900 book stipend each year
Does not pay room, board, or travel expenses

Timeline:

Monday, August 9, 2021: Online Application Portal Opens
Thursday, September 9, 2021: Applications Due by 11:59pm (No exceptions)
October 2021: Finalist Interviews (Finalists for the interviews will be notified via phone once evaluations have been completed)
Scholarship recipient will be notified by winter break

2021 Lilly Scholarship Recipient

Sophia Edwards will receive full tuition to her choice of any accredited public or private nonprofit college or university in Indiana, as well as a yearly stipend of up to $900 for required books and equipment.

Sophia is a senior at Eastern Greene High School and lives in Solsberry. She is the daughter of Thomas and Melinda Edwards. Sophia has been involved in FCA, Blessing Bag Program, Riley Dance Marathon, Greene County Youth Health Council, Student Council, Thunderbird Honor Society, IHSAA Student Leadership Advisory Committee, Golf and Greene County 4-H. She has volunteered with United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation, Special Olympics, Greene County Family Life Center, Operation Outreach Blanket Drive, Eastern Greene STEM Summer Class, Growing Kindness Project and Operation Outreach Food Drive.

Past Greene County Lilly Scholar Recipients

1990s Recipients

1998 — Brad Crites, Eastern Greene 1999 — Clint Kaho, White River Valley and Rachel Steward, White River Valley

2000s Recipients

2000 — Sarah Flinn, Bloomfield and Rod Walker, Linton 2001 — Morgan May and Drew Landry of Shakamak and Emilee Preble of Linton-Stockton 2002 — Tyler Blakley, Bloomfield, Heather Lee Crowe, Eastern Greene and Nadine Kristin Keitel, White River Valley 2003 — Emily Hayes, Shakamak, Justin King, Eastern Greene and Sarah Church, Linton-Stockton 2004 — Brittany Parkes, Bloomfield, Christina Catt, White River Valley and Tiffany Rae Todd, Linton-Stockton 2005 — Brandt Zimmerly, White River Valley and Bessy Lyons, Eastern Greene 2006 — Chantal Fink, Bloomfield, and Lindsey Sipes, White River Valley 2007 — Laura Beth Correll, Linton-Stockton and Kevin Cross, White River Valley; Matthew J. Wall, who attended White River Valley High, but lived in rural Coal City, received a Lilly Scholarship from the Owen County Foundation 2008 — Andrew Brown, Bloomfield and Carly Johnson, White River Valley 2009 — John Alexander Cochrane, Bloomfield and Micajah Green, Shakamak

2010s Recipients

2010 — Derek Corn, Bloomfield and Grace Anne Hayes, White River Valley 2011 — Seth Herndon, Linton-Stockton 2012 — Jacie Anderson, Eastern Greene 2013 — Casey Reynolds, Shakamak 2014 — Alex Bartlow, Bloomfield 2015 — Lilly Southern, Eastern Greene 2016 — Emma Brewer, Linton-Stockton 2017 — Abby Denham, White River Valley 2018 — Jordyn Kieft, Eastern Greene 2019 — Evan Cruse, Shakamak

2020s Recipients

2020 — Carson Brown, Linton-Stockton 2021 — Sophia Edwards, Eastern-Greene

Lilly Scholar Spotlight

Where Are They Now?

Rodney Walker graduated from Linton Stockton High School in 2000. He went on to receive a Bachelor of Science degree in Education from USI, and later obtained a master’s degree in Education from Indiana Wesleyan in 2010.

Rodney taught fourth and fifth grade at Highland Elementary School for 13 years before teaching Physical Education at Cedar Hall Community School for the past three years. But he does not just teach.
“I began coaching in Evansville 19 years ago and am currently the boys’ varsity (basketball) head coach at Evansville Central High School,” Rodney said.

Him and his wife, Amy, recently built a home where they live with their three kids, Blake, Addison, and Aubrey. Rodney said they still manage to make it back to Greene County to visit his parents, Rod and Carol, who live in Linton.

“Life is going great despite the tribulations of the current pandemic,” Rodney said. “…We keep busy with our kids’ daily activities.”

Where Are They Now?

In the eight years since Jacie Grant received the Lilly Scholarship, she has lived an adventurous life.

After graduating from Eastern Greene High School in 2012, Jacie attended Purdue University. While there, she interned and volunteered in countries all around the world--Australia, Ireland, Vietnam, and Italy, just to name a few. While in South Africa, she volunteered at a cheetah conservation center.

She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Animal Sciences and a minor in Food and Agribusiness Management. She went back to get her master’s degree in 2017.

She has worked at Cargill since 2016 and is now the Employee Experience Specialist for Cargill’s Virginia Market. “I love working in the food industry,” Jacie said. “Getting to take part in nourishing the world in a responsible way is incredible.”

Jacie currently lives in a house overlooking the mountains in Waynesboro, Virginia with her husband Connor, and their dog, Buck.

“Life is going great!” Jacie said. “I am grateful for my roots in Greene County and to Eli Lilly for the opportunity to pursue my further education without the financial burden.”

Where Are They Now?

Micajah (Green) Grassick said she has “taken a different career trajectory than I ever imagined.”

The 2010 Lilly Scholar and Shakamak grad started out by graduating from Purdue University with a Bachelor of Science in 2013 and is now the High Ability Coordinator at MSD Shakamak, where she oversees the programming for gifted students.
Micajah lives in Clay County with her husband and three-year old son, who she says, “fills our days with chaos and love.” They love spending their time with family and friends and enjoy the occasional Jeep ride. Her family also works with the Clay City Harrison Township Volunteer Fire Department.

Though she no longer lives in Greene County, Micajah has stayed involved within her home community. For the past three years, she has served on the Greene County Extension Board and been in varying leadership roles at Lebanon Baptist Church.
“Life is busy, but filled with goodness,” Micajah said.