3 local student volunteers win $50K in scholarships

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Three Wichita-area students were surprised at school with large scholarships from the United Way of the Plains .

Aaron Joel Smith Memorial Youth Volunteer Scholarships are awarded annually to three students who actively volunteer with the United Way of the Plains or other area nonprofits. There are three amounts adding up to $50,000.

This year’s recipients are from Wichita and Goddard schools:

• $25,000 scholarship – Lakshmishree Sivakumar, East High School, Wichita, USD 259
• $15,000 scholarship – Angela Davis, Eisenhower High School, Goddard, USD 265
• $10,000 scholarship – Isaiaz Whitaker, South High School, Wichita, USD 259

The scholarships honor the memory of Aaron Joel Smith. He was a young United Way volunteer on his way to a volunteer activity when he and three classmates died in a car crash in 1991. The awards are a tribute to his spirit of volunteerism and his involvement as a coordinator for the 1991 United Way fundraising campaign at Northeast Magnet School in Wichita.

The scholarships are open to students who meet these requirements:

• Reside in Sedgwick, Butler, Barber, Cowley, Harper, Harvey, Kingman, Pratt, Sumner or Reno counties.
• Be enrolled as a junior or senior in high school.
• Demonstrate that they have volunteered at least 200 hours (outside of school and organizations/societies that require volunteerism).
• Reported volunteer hours reflect volunteer work completed during the applicant’s high school career (freshman – senior).

Click here to learn more . Applications for the 2025 scholarships will open during the last quarter of 2024.

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