Two local students will receive four-year, full tuition scholarships as our 2021 Boone County Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program Scholars. Ellie Lindeman of Indiana Connections Academy and Morgan Browne of Zionsville Community High School will receive full tuition to an accredited public or private nonprofit college or university in Indiana and an annual $900 stipend for required books and equipment.
Ellie Lindeman, daughter of Ryan and Miranda Lindeman, loves caring for children, her community, and others. Her passion is overwhelmingly evident with eLovesKids, a group she founded, where children participate in baking camps and are taught the love of baking and the joy of giving back to others. The baked goods and proceeds are then used to bring positivity, delicious treats, and funding to first responders, local food pantries, and international orphanages. Ellie continues her love for children as a weekly volunteer for School on Wheels and at a local elementary school library. She is actively involved in fundraising for mission trips and as the vocal and piano leader for her church. She participates in leadership opportunities in National Honor Society and creates fundraising content for the Autism Society of Indiana. Ellie is an avid swimmer who coached youth swim teams for Zionsville Swim Club and provides private swim lessons. She is excited to pursue a goal of hers since she was 13 years old, becoming a nurse. Ellie plans to attend a smaller college in Indiana with a top notch nursing program, such as Indiana Wesleyan University or Anderson University, where students are top priority along with tailored support, encouragement, and opportunities to serve.
Morgan Browne, daughter of Anthony and Lyle Browne, demonstrates a love for her community in a number of ways. As a member of student government throughout middle school and high school, she has a passion for learning history and political science. She proudly served her community as an Indiana House and Indiana Senate Page. She is an avid volunteer with local nonprofit Notable Measures as a vocalist and Youth Advisory Board Member, and also serves as the co-president of Royalaires Show Choir. She pursues numerous leadership and community service opportunities through National Honor Society and Spanish Honor Society. Morgan also has a love for soccer, which was confirmed by receiving a Character Award from the Zionsville Women’s Soccer Team and continues to volunteer as a coach for youth recreation leagues at Zionsville Youth Soccer Association. Morgan looks forward to combining her interests to facilitate change in our society with a future in both public policy and law. She is considering Indiana University Bloomington, University of Notre Dame, or Butler University, as a result of their commitment to excellence and access to opportunities with public policy and affairs. She plans to then continue onto law school as a graduate student.
Our team is ecstatic for Ellie and Morgan to be named the 2021 Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship recipients. Through this year of challenging and unknown times, it was wonderful to see such strong applicants applying for this very competitive scholarship. Boone County is blessed to have amazing youth who are focused on helping others and making their local communities a better place to live, all while achieving their personal goals. We are blessed to have an amazing group of community volunteers who pour into this process and work together through the application process. We are also extremely grateful to Lilly Endowment, Inc and Independent Colleges of Indiana for their continued support of higher education in Indiana!” –Jodi Gietl, President & CEO for the Community Foundation of Boone County.
This year, 45 submitted applications were reviewed for the Boone County Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program. Eight finalists took part in an interview process. Top finalists were submitted to Independent Colleges of Indiana, Inc. (ICI) which selects the final recipients. The scholarship recipients are nominated by a committee of county-wide volunteers who evaluate each student’s community involvement, volunteerism, academic performance, work experience, extracurricular activities and awards, and honors. Since the inception of the program in 1998, Community Foundation of Boone County has awarded this scholarship opportunity to over 50 Boone County residents consisting of 16 Western Boone seniors, 15 Zionsville Community High School seniors, 14 Lebanon High School seniors, 4 Sheridan High School seniors, 1 Covenant Christian senior, and 1 Indiana Connections Academy senior.
The primary purposes of the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program are 1) to help raise the level of educational attainment in Indiana; 2) to increase awareness of the beneficial roles Indiana community foundations can play in their communities; and 3) to encourage and support the efforts of current and past Lilly Endowment Community Scholars to engage with each other and with Indiana business, governmental, educational, nonprofit and civic leaders to improve the quality of life in Indiana generally and in local communities throughout the state. Since its inception in 1998, Lilly Endowment Inc. has provided over $424M in grant support for the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program. Administered statewide by Independent Colleges of Indiana, Inc. with local support from Indiana community foundations, 4,912 Indiana high school students have been awarded the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship.