Sulpur Springs student awarded Texas 4-H scholarship

Sulpur Springs student awarded Texas 4-H scholarship Image

• Rylie Carroll received a $20,000 Baccalaureate Scholarship from Texas 4-H Foundation, due to her 11 years of participation in various 4-H activities, including showing livestock, modeling and public speaking. From left are retired Extension Agent Johanna Hicks; Monty and Diana Teel, Carroll’s uncle and aunt; Carroll; (seated) grandmother Grace Teel; mother Tammy Teel Jones; paternal grandmother Billie Carroll; and Hopkins County Extension Agent Mario Villarino. Staff Photo by Tammy Vinson
• Sulphur Springs High School senior Rylie Carroll learned Friday that she received a $20,000 Texas 4-H Foundation Baccalaureate Scholarship. She plans to attend Texas A&M University this fall. Staff Photo by Tammy Vinson
• Rylie Carroll, center, stands with Hopkins County Extension Agents Mario Villarino, left, and Family and Consumer Science Agent Lisa Sprague. Carroll has been an active 4-H participant since childhood and is an accomplished public speaker as a result. Staff Photo by Tammy Vinson

Tammy Vinson Tue, 05/14/2024 - 19:28 Subhead | Financial Award Long Caption

Staff Photo by Tammy Vinson

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Hopkins County 4-H member and graduating Sulphur Springs High School senior Rylie Carroll learned last Friday, May 10, that she has been awarded a $20,000 Texas 4-H Foundation Baccalaureate scholarship.

Carroll, 18, will attend Texas A&M University in College Station this fall. She plans to major in agricultural communications and minor in sales, with the hope of becoming an insurance agent or working in sales, marketing or graphic design with an agricultural focus.

Carroll has been an active 4-H member from an early age, with a particular interest in fashion and food and nutrition. She has served as a Texas 4-H Council member, a Healthy Texas Youth Ambassador and an Agriculture Career Ready Ambassador.

She has earned multiple awards throughout her years in 4-H, including being a three-time record book winner; a former national champion in the 4-H Fashion Show.

4-H membership is a tradition in Carroll’s family. Her mother, Tammy Teel

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Jones, was also a Hopkins County 4-H member — in fact, she was one of now-retired 4-H Family and Consumer Sciences Agent Johanna Easdon Hicks’ first 4-H members.

Carroll said she’s gained many new interests as a result of being a 4-H member, but she’s most passionate about public speaking.

“I wrote a speech about the importance of insurance, which I learned through my family’s experience, and I’ve reached over 2,000 people with it,” Carroll said.

Of her 4-H experience, Carroll said, “The biggest thing I learned was how to balance everything. Between my parents’ divorce when I was seven, my dad dying when I was 10 and moving to a new place in 2019, 4-H really helped my find my place so I could still develop into the person I am.

'I was able to find the familiar in a new place, while learning new things. 4-H helped me to learn how to be both a leader and a follower. Overcoming the fear of failure and embracing setbacks as opportunities are two of the most important lessons that I have learned in 4-H. The confidence I gained in my communication skills will help me be successful in my future career in financial planning,' Carroll said.