The audience at the 2024 Senior Recognition Banquet listened as stories were shared about individuals who generously provided scholarships to Parsons High School seniors.
These students are now preparing to venture forward and create their own stories, which may one day be shared in a similar manner.
Some scholarships were in memory of those who had graduated from PHS, while some others were in memory of those who taught in USD 503 for years. For each, whatever their story, Parsons USD 503 and education held a special place in their lives and hearts.
Scholarships ranged from around $200 to $32,000, helping students cover college related costs. Tens of thousands in financing was awarded.
The Parsons Education Foundation, colleges, businesses, civic organizations and representatives of family memorials and trusts presented 53 PHS seniors with a total of 159 scholarships totaling $211,027 Sunday evening.
The Parsons Education Foundation alone provided 31 scholarships totaling $24,150.
Besides those persons recognizing students for scholarships, PHS Counselor Tabitha Routh had the honor of announcing names of senior award recipients.
The 2024 Kansas Scholars Curriculum Graduates included Timmy Chen, Davis Clark, Braylee Cramer, Maryssa Drummond, Amelia Hetlinger, DeAva Holman, Adian Marshall, Jayce Quirin, Isabella Ramsey, Autumn Shields, Sydney Webb and Landon Wheat. The Scholars Curriculum consists of completing four years of English; four years of math; three years of science; three years of social studies, and two years of world (foreign) language.
Of those, students named 2024 Kansas State Scholars were Davis Clark, Amelia Hetlinger, DeAva Holman, Adian Marshall, and Isabella Ramsey, based on ACT composite scores and grade point average.
The 2024 President’s Education Excellence Award winners were Davis Clark, Amelia Hetlinger, Adian Marshall, Carter Swanson and Jayce Quirin. The President's Award for OUstanding Academic Excellence recognizes students who have acheived academic excellence. President's Excellence requires a grade point average of 3.5 or above and a score of 85 percentile or above on either reading or math sections of the ACT.
Clark was also the recipient of the 2024 Certificate for Exceptional Academic Performance for earning a composite score of 32 or above on the ACT.