Congratulations to the 2016 LVRR Scholarship Winners. They have excelled academically, athletically and were active within the community.
LVRR Scholarship
Katie Bacher (Emmaus) graduated from MIT in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and will be going to graduate school to get her masters at MIT for Computer Science. Katie had a perfect 5.0 GPA (on MIT’s scale). This summer Katie has an internship at Peloton. She competed for the MIT cross country and track & field teams. Katie was a 3x honoree to the NEWMAC All Conference and Academic Teams. She was also named to the USTFCCCA All Region and All Academic Teams. Katie qualified for the 2019-2020 NCAA Indoor National meet in the mile, but due to Covid-19 the meet was cancelled at the very last minute. Katie still has indoor and outdoor track eligibility to use next year in grad school.
LVRR Scholarship
Mikayla Stoudt (Parkland) graduated summa cum laude from East Carolina University with a degree in Public Health. She has applied to several Physician Assistant Programs. As a student athlete, Mikayla maintained a 3.99 overall GPA, was on the Chancellor’s list for 7 semesters, 1 time on the Dean’s list, and was named a 4x American Athletic Conference All-Academic Team for cross country and track & field. She was a member of the 4 x 1500 meter relay team that set the ECU record, earned top 10 all-time in the 6K with a time of 21:21 and was a 2019 and 2020 ECU Athletics Breakfast of Champions nominee for academic achievements. Mikayla was the student athlete committee representative, a local outreach executive on the Board of United2Heal ECU Club, a published co-author in the Journal of Organic Chemistry and named the 2017 Most Improved Female Runner.
LVRR Scholarship
Kevin Lapsansky (Easton) graduated magna cum laude from Temple University with a degree in Finance. Kevin is looking for a job in the Philadelphia or Bethlehem areas. Kevin competed for the Temple cross country team. He received USTFCCCA National All-Academic Honors. Kevin was All-region in 2019, a 3x All-Conference which was the first time in Temple AAC History and Philadelphia Inquirer All- Academic team.
LVRR Scholarship
Calvin Schneck (Whitehall) graduated from Lafayette College with a degree in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in Economics. At the moment Calvin is looking for a job in the Lehigh Valley. Calvin competed for the Lafayette cross country and track & field teams. For track, Calvin ran the 10th all time fastest 800 meter with a time of 1:53.46 and 4th all time fastest 1500 meter with a time of 3:52.71. He qualified for the IC4A meet each season since his sophomore outdoor track season. Calvin assisted Ryan Paradise in organizing the virtual Lafayette vs. Lehigh meet this year.
Ed Thompson Memorial Scholarship
Ryan Paradise (Emmaus) graduated from Lehigh University in Mechanical Engineering. Ryan competed for Lehigh cross country and track & field teams. Ryan was named to the 2018 and 2019 Patriot League Academic Honor Rolls. Ryan helped organize the virtual meet between Lehigh and Lafayette to finish his running career at Lehigh. Ryan will commission as a Second Lieutenant on June 10th then report to Engineering Basic Officer Leaders Course at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri from the end of July until December. In January 2021 Ryan reports to Colorado.
Tom Illick Memorial Scholarship
Devon Fogel (Notre Dame-Green Pond) graduated from Moravian College, class of 2020, with a double major in Health Sciences and Philosophy. He maintained a career GPA of 3.7, achieved Dean’s List every semester, and earned a spot on the Landmark Conference academic honor roll seven times. He was inducted into Phi Eta Sigma, Chi Alpha Sigma, and Phi Sigma Tau honor societies. Other achievements include the 2019 Academic Excellence Award in Philosophy. Devon competed for Moravian’s cross country team from 2016 to 2019, and for Moravian’s track and field team from 2018 to 2020. Devon will begin working toward a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree at Messiah College in August 2020.
Tom Illick Memorial Scholarship
Brooke Schaffer (Emmaus) graduated cum laude from Penn State University with a degree in Hospitality Management with a minor in Entrepreneurship and Innovation and a Meeting and Event Management Certificate. While at PSU, Brooke was involved with Eta Sigma Delta (Honors Society), Silver Wings (Civilian Sector of Air Force), and the National Society of Minorities in Hospitality, Meeting & Events Club. Brooke served as Food and Beverage Director for School of Hospitality Management benefitting THON, served as Corporate Donor and Alumni Relations Director for Tetra, served on Special Events, Rules and Regulation THON Committees. She worked 1,568 hours through 4 internships including seasonal hospitality assistant at ArtsQuest, marketing intern for Penn State Housing and Food Services, Commonwealth Campuses, and Stewardship and Events intern for the Nittany Lion Club (sector of PSU athletics).
Tom Illick Memorial Scholarship
Lauren Drabenstott (William Allen) graduated magna cum laude from New York University with a degree in Environmental Studies and minors in Animal Studies and English. During her three and a half years in NYC, she spent her time volunteering, learning about activism, and participating as a member of EarthMatters, NYU’s environmental club. After various internships in the environmental sector, Lauren took an interest in agriculture and food systems, which encouraged her to spend the past two summers working on farms, teaching kids about growing food, and advocating for sustainability and equity in agriculture. She’s working as a communications specialist at Rodale Institute in Kutztown, PA, a leading organization in regenerative organic research.