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2021 Bright Scholars of Iowa at ISU

Recipients Announced

The Bright Foundation is excited to announce the 2021 Bright Scholars of Iowa recipients attending Iowa State University.

The Bright Scholars of Iowa award is a need and merit-based grant designed to help ensure that a selected number of outstanding Iowa high school seniors have the financial means to complete a two-year or four-year college education without debt.

The 2021 Bright Scholars of Iowa attending ISU include:

Gavin Rich
Ezra Odole
Beau Daniels
Autumn Hildebrand
Mi So
Collin Boehmer
Diego Perez Celeste
Madalyn Palmer

These scholars are now on the path to graduate, debt-free, prepared to launch their careers and give back!

“I’m a student at DMACC and this award is extremely helpful and appreciated. All this past semester, I’ve been working and going to school while barely making it by. This award will give me the chance to focus on school more. I am so honored to receive it and I am so thankful there are people like you to help college students, like myself, out. I plan on finishing up school and becoming an elementary teacher. The scholarship will help me get one step closer to that goal!”

“I am and always will be eternally grateful for what you have done for me and what you’ve done for others. It’s truly amazing how two special people, Lois and Dale Bright, could be so generous in helping others out. I truly aspire to be like them, giving out of generosity and expecting nothing in return. As college rolls on, I get more and more excited to become a teacher of mathematics, not just to teach young adults math, but also to challenge and aspire them to be better people. Without your help though, I am not sure any of that would be possible. For that, I am truly thankful. For now though, I will continue on in college, doing the best I possibly can do and doing my best to represent the Bright Foundation well. Thank you for all you do again, and God Bless.”

“As I finish my sophomore year, I am grateful that I have received the Bright Scholarship to help me achieve my goals. My grades have been good and I am proud that I’ve been making Dean’s List. I attended the Engineering job fair to target companies for a summer internship. After being offered two, I chose Nutra Flo, a liquid fertilizer manufacturer in South Dakota. I’m excited to see what I will learn and how much I know out in the real world of Mechanical Engineering. Thank you again for awarding me the Bright Scholarship. Thanks to the Bright Foundation, I have been able to attend ISU without the burden of deep financial indebtedness. It has allowed me to experience ISU but most importantly, I have been able to study in order to do well in my classes. It is because of the Brights — they had a vision to help young people in Iowa achieve higher education. I am excited to be a part of that vision.”

“I want to personally thank the Bright Foundation for this year. I would not be nearly as successful without their financial support. I come from an incredibly humble background and the financial stability they have given me in the form of this scholarship has allowed me to commit my highest potential to my classwork. They are the reason I am the student I am today. I have tried to carry the Bright Foundation’s values close to my heart this academic year. I worked extremely hard and devoted much of my outside time to volunteer work. I cannot put into works how grateful I am for the opportunities this foundation has given me. They have laid the groundwork for all of my current and future success. I plan to celebrate these values, and this foundation for the rest of my life.”

“This is a great community of scholarship recipients to be part of. The scholarship has improved my life in so many ways – not only by allowing me to graduate debt-free in just eight semesters, but also by providing a support system and a network of other Bright Scholars.”

“Being a Bright Scholar means being part of a family that is selfless and giving, and which strives to provide a better future for today’s youth who, in turn, will contribute to society.”