Keota Students Receive Scholarships

The Keota community has come through in a BIG way to show support for the Keota High School graduates and their educational endeavors.  The Keota Education Foundation is in its 30th year of providing Keota High School seniors scholarships and was able to provide $25,500 to the students of the 2024 graduating class. Scholarship money is provided through donations by community members, alumni, memorials, trusts, & endowments, and fundraisers.

This winter, a rather lengthy application form was distributed to any senior interested in applying.  This year 8 seniors applied.  Student names were separated from the pages of the applications and code numbers were applied. Separate committees anonymously evaluated different parts of the applications.  The applicants were given point values for eight different areas: grade point and college preparatory classes, work experience, community involvement, school involvement, an essay on future goals and plans, years attending KHS, and a citizenship appraisal averaged from teacher evaluations.  The numbers were then compiled, and dollar amounts were assigned according to the points the student received.  Every year an effort is made to make this process fair, impartial, and unbiased.

This year's recipients are as follows:

Two exclusive Keota Education Foundation Scholarships were given to Emily Sheetz and Tanner Waterhouse. Emily is the daughter of Jim and Angie Sheetz and will be attending William Penn to study nursing. Tanner is the son of James and Traci Waterhouse and will attend William Penn for business management. They received $2100 and $1200.

The first named scholarships, the Travis J. Greiner Memorial Scholarships for students entering the agricultural field, were established in 2021 by the Marvin J. & Deb Greiner family in memory of their son, Travis, a 2010 KHS graduate.  These are $1000 awards, with $1600 & $300 from the Foundation general fund added to reflect the recipients point total on their scored applications; and went to Hunter Sieren and Ashton Thomas. Hunter is the son of Jeff and Shauna Sieren. He will attend Iowa State University for Ag Studies. Ashton is the son of Ashley Greiner and Marico Thomas and will attend Southeastern Community College for Ag Seminar.

The Jaynane Lillig Memorial Scholarships were established in 2013 from the estate of “Jayne” Lillig, a 1959 KHS graduate and former school employee. These $1500 scholarships were awarded to Noah Fisher and Conner Strand. Noah is the son of M. Reed Fisher and Ashley Cory and will attend the University of Northern Iowa for a Criminal Justice degree. He also received the $1000 UNI/Williams Scholarship. Conner is the son of Erik and Erinn Strand and Nicole Strand and will attend Kirkwood Community College for Auto Tech. $200 and $100 was added from the KEF general fund for these two.

The Seth Richardson Memorial Scholarship was established in 2023 by Randy and Linda Richardson, KHS graduates, in memory of their son, Seth – a 1996 graduate of Keota High School. This $1325 scholarship, plus $575 from the Foundation general account to align the amount with the points scored on the application was awarded to Chase Sieren, son of Aaron and Jeri Sieren, who will attend ISU for Ag/Mechanical Engineering.

The Helen McFadden Memorial Scholarship was established in 1990 by Jack McFadden in memory of his wife, Helen. This $1600 scholarship along with $200 went to Cole Kindred. He will be going to Kirkwood CC to study HVAC.

The Edna Schreckengast Antes Memorial Scholarship was established in 1997 by Joella Antes in memory of her mother Edna Schreckengast Antes and is awarded each year to a female student who exhibits high academic achievement. This year’s $2000 award, with an additional $300 was awarded to Cassy Swantz, daughter of John and Deb Swantz and Jasmine Miller. Cassy is going to start out at Kirkwood CC for Nursing.

Finally, The Frank A. and Edna B. Klein Memorial Scholarships were established in 2002 by John E. Klein and Mary Isabelle Montgomery in honor of their parents and are now for $2000 each. The recipients are Aiden McGuire, Sawyer Stout, and Evan Vittetoe. Aiden is the son of Andrew and Erin McGuire and will be going to Iowa State to study Civil Engineering. Sawyer is the son of Dan and Lori Stout and will attend ISU for Finance and Business. Evan is the son of Todd and Brooke Vittetoe and will go to Kirkwood CC to study Ag Business. These three will also be receiving $500 - $1500 additional in KEF funds based on their application point totals.

Once again, the KEF wants to thank everyone who has supported the Foundation in the past. Your generosity continues to impress and hearten us all. 

We encourage everyone to consider our ongoing and upcoming fundraisers. The Friends of the Foundation Brick Wall is in the main entrance of the Keota School Gym. You can have a brick personalized for yourself, or to remember a loved one/family members or a graduated class.  The 480 Club is a way to support the foundation and provides recognition on a plaque in the main entrance of the Keota School Gym. The annual Foundation Golf Tournament will be held Sunday, June 2nd at Lagos Acres in Keota.

The Foundation is also a conduit for people who wish to make contributions to the school’s general fund.  In the past, the Foundation has given financial support to such programs as the Keota Elementary Guided Reading Programs, computer labs, and updates to security, technology, and curriculum to name a few.  You can also visit our website under the information tab on the Keota School Website at www.keota.k12.ia.us.

Photo Caption: L to R: Tanner Waterhouse, Noah Fisher, Ashton Thomas, Chase Sieren, Aiden McGuire, Conner Strand, Sawyer Stout, Cole Kindred, Evan Vittetoe, Hunter Sieren, Cassandra Swantz, Emily Sheetz, and Makala Baughman.