Topeka, KS – Scholarships totaling $10,000 were awarded to five Kansas high school students who demonstrated their knowledge of money management in this year’s Kansas Financial Scholars Essay Contest.
Ella Burrows of Satanta High School (Satanta, KS) earned the first-place spot in the annual contest sponsored by the Kansas Office of the State Bank Commissioner (OSBC), the Kansas Insurance Department (KID), and its division, the Office of the Securities Commissioner (KSC). Ella plans to attend Fort Hays State University to pursue majors in political science and journalism. Ella received a $3,000 scholarship towards her education.
The second-place scholarship of $2,500 was awarded to Klaire Kuckelman of Northeast Magnet High School (Kechi, KS). Peyton Price from Rossville High School (Rossville, KS) earned third place and a $2,000 scholarship. Fourth place, with a $1,500 scholarship, was awarded to Hilary Tallman from Andover Central High School (Andover, KS), and the fifth place scholarship of $1,000 goes to Jeffrey Schremmer from St. Mary’s Colgan High School (Pittsburg, KS).
When asked about this year’s scholarship contest, Bank Commissioner David Herndon said, “Judging this year’s entries was a difficult task. That’s a good thing because it demonstrates just how deserving each candidate is. Congratulations and thank you to each applicant as well as to their sponsoring instructors.”
“Every year we receive essays from talented Kansas students, but I’m particularly impressed with this year’s winners and the challenges they overcame,” Insurance Commissioner Vicki Schmidt said. “A special thank you to the teachers who helped them navigate the challenges of COVID and I look forward to seeing the successes of these young Kansans.”
To be eligible for this scholarship, students must have completed a financial literacy program that aligns with the Kansas financial literacy K-12 standards, and they must be attending a Kansas technical school, college, or university in the Fall of 2021. To enter, the students were asked to use a college comparison tool and submit a two-part essay. The first part of the essay discussed how they learned about money management and its effect on their approach to managing financial decisions for their continued education. For the second part, they described how they used the knowledge gained through their financial literacy program, the comparison tool, and personal experience.
Two high school financial literacy teachers were also recognized for their commitment to their students. Tim Dusin of Satanta High School was honored as the teacher of first-place winner Ella Burrows. Diana Denny was recognized as the teacher who had the most students submit essays. Both teachers will receive $500 gift cards to use for educational supplies.
Ella Burrows’ winning essay and additional information about the winners will be available on the website of the Office of the State Bank Commissioner, www.osbckansas.org.
Educating Kansas consumers is an important mission of the Kansas agencies sponsoring these scholarships. There are many different financial literacy programs and curriculum used in high schools and this contest challenges students to use that knowledge to research and analyze decisions they will make for their futures. The scholarships are funded by fines imposed upon, or settlements reached with, companies within the jurisdictions of the sponsoring state offices; no taxpayer monies are used.
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The OSBC regulates all state-chartered banks, trust companies, mortgage businesses, supervised lenders, credit service organizations, and money transmitters that do business in the State of Kansas. The mission of the OSBC is to ensure the integrity of regulated providers of financial services through responsible and proactive oversight, while protecting and educating consumers.
The mission of the KID, and its division, the KSC, is to Regulate. Educate. Advocate.
