Thursday, June 21st, 2012

Jackson Carey, a resident of Follansbee and rising senior at Brooke High School, now knows he will attend West Virginia Wesleyan College. On Thursday, June 21, Carey was named the 2012 West Virginia Scholar, which provides him with a four-year scholarship to Wesleyan, including tuition and fees, room and board.

Carey will enroll at Wesleyan beginning the fall of 2013. He plans to major in pre-optometry and eventually open in West Virginia a pediatric optometry clinic that will focus on early diagnosis and correction of eye problems for disadvantaged youth.

First runner-up is Andrew Mellert of Kenna, a rising senior at Ripley High School, while second runner-up is Emily Stasny of Tioga, a rising senior at Richwood High School.

Other finalists for 2012 were Mary Casto, Inwood,; Jordan Danko, Ravenswood; Anna Flesher, Ravenswood; Kathalyn Maxson, Ravenswood; Summer Peyton, Chapmanville; Rachel Ransom, Kearneysville; and Allison Roberts, Vienna.

Mellert and Stasny receive scholarships of $5,000 and $2,500, respectively, each of their four years. This year’s finalists earned an average GPA of 3.9. In addition to maintaining high academic marks, the finalists participate in athletics and extracurricular activities.

Scholarship funds for the West Virginia Scholar Award are provided by the Culpepper Wesleyan Scholars Award and by West Virginia Wesleyan. The Culpepper Wesleyan Scholars Award was established in 1991 as an endowed scholarship fund by Olive O’Dell Culpepper, Class of 1933, and C. Ross Culpepper, Class of 1930. Sponsors of the scholarship are Energize West Virginia, West Virginia Forestry Association, Friends of Coal, MetroNews, and West Virginia Wesleyan.

The scholarship competition is open to high school juniors throughout West Virginia.

L-r: 2012 WV Scholar winner Jackson Carey, 1st place winner Andrew Mellert and 2nd place winner Emily Stansy.

L-R: Bob Radspinner, WV Division of Forestry, Kim Lawrence, Energize WV with Natural Gas, Wesleyan President Pam Balch, 2012 WV Scholar winner Jackson Carey, 1st place winner Andrew Mellert, 2nd place winner Emily Stansy, Marvin and Elaine Culpepper, Hoppy Kercheval, and Bill Raney, WV Coal Association-Friends of Coal.