Center welcomes 20 Legacy of Heroines scholars

CATEGORIES: September 2013, Voices

Since 1996, the Legacy of Heroines program has provided a number of scholarships to women who seek involvement in and knowledge about the political process and public service. Each scholarship has specific criteria determined by the donor, and all applicants must demonstrate academic achievement and leadership experience.

Each student selected receives a one-time scholarship divided between the fall and spring semesters. Students may renew their scholarships if funds are available and the criteria continue to be fulfilled.

Students in the program are offered a plethora of opportunities that include trips to the state capitol, dinners with guest speakers, leadership development programs and mentoring. Students also are given the special opportunity to meet with their donor(s).

Returning scholars are:

Madeline Becker, a senior double majoring in political science and history with a minor in dietetics from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is a recipient of the Rice-Neville Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Dianne and Keith Bystrom of Ames, Iowa. She interned for the Christie Vilsack congressional campaign in 2012 and started the Cyclones for Vilsack club on campus where she organized various events. She is a political science research assistant and runs cross country for Iowa State.

Molly Bryant, a senior in journalism and political science, is a recipient of the Elizabeth Hoffman and Brian R. Binger Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Elizabeth Hoffman and Brian Binger of Ames, Iowa. From Bettendorf, Iowa, Bryant is currently interning at the Story County Attorney’s Office and is editor-in-chief and president of Uhuru magazine as well as executive vice president of Alpha Delta Pi sorority. She has held previous internships with the Iowa House of Representatives and the Feminist Majority Foundation.

Elizabeth Hagan is the recipient of the Katherine Annin Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Annin’s estate. She is a junior in family and consumer science education with a minor in biology from Bayard, Iowa. Hagan is in the university Honors Program, serves as the historian and secretary of the Family and Consumer Science Education Club, was a peer mentor for the Human Development and Family Studies Learning Community and volunteers for the St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church.

Laura Hansen, a recipient of the Helen Jensen Howe Legacy of Heroines scholarship for women in science, sponsored by Helen Howe of Muscatine, Iowa, is a senior in biophysics from Shenandoah, Iowa. She is an active member of the Physics and Astronomy Club and is former president of the Liberal Arts and Sciences Student Council. She has interned at CERN Laboratories in Geneva, Switzerland, and at the Ames Laboratory on Iowa State’s campus.

Janet Horsager is the recipient of the Beth Bierbaum Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Beth Bierbaum of Wellesley, Mass. She is a senior in economics and music from Minneapolis, Minn. Horsager recently completed a research internship at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y. She is the finance director for Iowa State’s International Student Council, has been an intern at the Catt Center, participated on the Women’s Leadership Retreat Committee and served as a College of Liberal Arts and Sciences career fair ambassador. Additionally, she is a student representative for the Ames Town and Gown Chamber Music Association.

Rebecca Konicek is a recipient of the Elverna Christian Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Darleane Hoffman of Oakland, Calif. She is a senior in biochemistry from Rockford, Ill. Konicek is social chair of the Biochemistry Club and a member of the Pre-Med Club. She is a member of the St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church service and justice team and volunteers for their emergency residency program. Konicek is also a Habitat for Humanity volunteer.

Jennifer Musgrove is the recipient of the James R. and Lauri K. Young Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Lauri and James Young of Cedar Falls, Iowa. She is a junior in world languages and cultures with a minor in Spanish from Ames, Iowa. Musgrove is a volunteer violinist for the Central Iowa Symphony, has volunteered as an interpreter for the Ames Community School District and completed an internship in August with Barten Law Office in Ames. A non-traditional student, she is a wife and a mother to two teenage boys.

Danielle Pohl is a recipient of the Helen Jensen Howe Legacy of Heroines scholarship for women in science, sponsored by Howe. She is a senior in biology from Center Point, Iowa, and hopes to attend medical school upon graduation. Pohl is very involved in campus and community activities. She is currently an undergraduate teaching assistant, a peer mentor for the Biological Education Success Team Learning Community, a pre-health ambassador and an undergraduate research symposium presenter.

New scholars are:

Cathryn Kelzenberg, a recipient of the Rice-Neville Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Dianne and Keith Bystrom, is a junior in political science from Woodbury, Minn. Kelzenberg is a community adviser for Iowa State’s Department of Residence and served as a student research assistant for studies on women and politics conducted by Catt Center staff. She is active in Iowa State’s Political Science Club and Model European Union.

Krista Klocke, an Ames, Iowa, native, is a sophomore in speech communication and communication studies. She is a recipient of the Phyllis Davis Legacy of Heroines scholarship, which is sponsored by multiple donors. Klocke served as co-president of Alpha Lambda Delta/Phi Eta Sigma freshman honor society, is a representative to the Liberal Arts and Sciences Student Council for the Communication Studies Club, and helps teach freshman students in the first-year Honors Program seminar. She is also very involved in the Ames community and her local church.

Szuyin Leow, a senior double majoring in mechanical engineering and economics, is a recipient of the Elizabeth Hoffman and Brian R. Binger Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Hoffman and Binger. She is from Apple Valley, Minn. Leow has served as the president of Pi Beta Phi fraternity, was the general co-director of Iowa State’s Dance Marathon in 2012, participated in the ISU President’s Leadership Class and the Engineering Dean’s Leadership Seminar, and served as alumni relations co-chair for the Homecoming Central Committee.

Veronica Middlebrooks, a sophomore in biology, is a recipient of the Elverna Christian Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Darleane Hoffman. Middlebrooks is from Chicago, Ill., and is enrolled in the community leadership and public service certificate program coordinated by the Catt Center. She is an undergraduate teaching assistant for Biology 212 and is an active member in the Pre-Med Club.

Melissa Moy, a recipient of the Helen Jensen Howe Legacy of Heroines scholarship for women in science, sponsored by Howe, is a freshman in biology from Aurora, Ill. She is enrolled in the community leadership and public service certificate program coordinated by the Catt Center and is a member of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Dean’s Leadership Seminar. She was a George Washington Carver program intern at Iowa State during the 2012 summer and is currently an intern for the Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management.

Anna Olsen is a Phyllis Davis Legacy of Heroines scholarship recipient, sponsored by multiple donors, from McCallsburg, Iowa. She is a senior in microbiology with a minor in political science. Olsen interned for the Catt Center’s Ready to Run™ Iowa: Campaign Training for Women program and worked as a research assistant this summer. She is a member of the Student Organic Farm and Bioinformatics Club, secretary of The Green Umbrella and volunteers as an anti-puppy mill activist.

Maddison Shrader is a recipient of the Elverna Christian Legacy of Heroines scholarship, which is sponsored by Darleane Hoffman. She is a sophomore double majoring in biology and political science from Tiffin, Iowa. Shrader is an active member of the Iowa State Democrats, volunteers as a camp counselor at the Iowa 4-H Center in Madrid, Iowa, and volunteers with the Special Olympics. She is also an active member in Dub-H and the freshman Honors Program.

Alicia Stearns is the recipient of the Political Science Alumni Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Bill Haigh of Fairmont, Minn.; Dwight Ink and Dona Wolf of Lansdowne, Va.; Judith Raak and Richard Heuwinkel of Washington, D.C.; and Terrence and Maureen Tobin of Clive, Iowa. She is a junior in political science from Mason City, Iowa. Stearns is on the Iowa State women’s swimming and diving team and is a mentor for young girls at the YWCA on campus. Stearns volunteers at a local elementary school, was a volunteer for the Obama campaign in 2012 and is a member of the Pre-Law Club.

Sarah Synovec is a recipient of the Elizabeth Hoffman and Brian R. Binger Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Hoffman and Binger. She is a senior in marketing from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Synovec was the Plaza of Heroines intern for the Catt Center from spring 2012 through spring 2013, was co-director for CRASH through Hunger, was a teaching assistant for LAS 222, and interned for UMB Financial Corporation in Kansas City, Mo. She is currently the public relations intern for Connect Iowa in Des Moines.

Kate Tindall is the recipient of the Jane Greimann Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Lowell Greimann of Ames, Iowa. She is a junior double majoring in political science and journalism and mass communication from LeMars, Iowa. Tindall is currently the Archives of Women’s Political Communication intern for the Catt Center and is a production intern for the city of Ames channel 12 television station. She has been a teaching assistant in the political science department, a reporter for ISUtv’s “Newswatch” program and has been on the dean’s list throughout her Iowa State career.

Morgan Todd, senior in political science with minors in journalism and mass communication, history and general business, is from Windsor Heights, Iowa. She is a recipient of a Rice-Neville Legacy of Heroines scholarship, sponsored by Dianne and Keith Bystrom. Todd is a research assistant for the Catt Center’s Gender Balance Project, a lab monitor for the political science department at Iowa State and serves on the wait staff at Texas Roadhouse restaurant.

Lissandra Villa is a recipient of the Elverna Christian Legacy of Heroines scholarship, which is sponsored by Darleane Hoffman. She is a sophomore in journalism and mass communication and political science from Lincoln, Neb. She has been very involved in campus activities as well as the freshman Honors Program and the President’s Leadership Class. Villa is currently a reporter for the Iowa State Daily and spent her summer as a press intern for U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa in Washington, D.C.