WKU students and recent graduates earned recognition in the nation’s most prestigious scholarship competitions during the 2025–2026 academic year, producing results that have once again sent WKU to the top of state and national rankings in several competitions. A total of 153 Hilltoppers submitted 185 applications for nationally competitive scholarships, earning recognition 48 times and more than $700,000 in funding for study abroad, research, and graduate study.

Beyond the financial value and prestige attached to these awards, participating in national scholarship competitions incorporate high-impact practices that enhance a student’s overall educational experience. Developing application materials is a writing-intensive process, with students receiving regular and detailed feedback from three full-time professional advisors in the Office of Scholar Development. While this process can span weeks during a single application cycle, many students return for additional opportunities, refining their skills over months or years to pursue research, study abroad, and other academic and professional goals. 

(More: List of 2025-26 Nationally Competitive Scholarship Winners) 

The 2025–2026 academic year marked the seventeenth year since the creation of the Office of Scholar Development. In the past five years alone, 349 applications submitted by WKU students and alumni working with the office earned national recognition, totaling more than $2.7 million in external scholarship funding. 

Of all applications, 62 percent were submitted by Pell Grant recipients, and 41 percent were submitted by first-generation college students. Of all awards, 60 percent were earned by Pell Grant recipients, and 50 percent were earned by first-generation college students. 

"It’s always exciting to tally up the numbers through the year, especially in the spring when announcements are coming one after another, but those days are brief moments in much longer and more rewarding journeys,” said Dr. Melinda Grimsley, Assistant Director of the Office of Scholar Development. 

“Writing an application essay is a voyage of discovery about what makes you tick. It’s an exercise in seeing what you are capable of. Year after year, students and alumni write their futures into being in application essays, and nurturing that awareness and sometimes profound transformation never gets old for me and my colleagues in OSD.” 

Among this year’s accomplishments are the following highlights: 

Caden Lucas earned the second Truman Scholarship in WKU’s history. The Truman Scholarship is the living memorial to President Harry S. Truman and the premier graduate fellowship in the United States for those pursuing careers as leaders in public service. The only Truman Scholar chosen from Kentucky in 2026, Lucas will receive a $30,000 scholarship for graduate or professional school as well as professional enrichment and mentorship. 

All seven of WKU’s Boren Scholarship applicants earned $25,000 awards for long-term study abroad focused on critical language study. For the third year in a row, WKU was named a Top Performing Institution of Boren Scholarships, this year tying for #3 alongside Arizona State University, the University of Arizona, and University of Wisconsin.  

This spring, WKU was recognized as an all-time Top Producer of Gilman Scholarships among medium colleges and universities over the 25-year history of the program. Once again this year, WKU students earned more Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships than any other institution in Kentucky. In a year with a record number of applications nationwide, 21 WKU students earned scholarships totaling $79,000 in the October 2025 and March 2026 cycles. The Gilman Scholarship expands access to international education by supporting students with limited financial means to study abroad. 

Again, WKU led the state in Goldwater Scholarships with two awardees: Cole Meador and Alejandro Ramirez. The Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship is the nation’s premier undergraduate STEM research award, offering up to $7,500 per year for sophomores and juniors pursuing research careers in the sciences.  

WKU students and recent alumni again earned recognition through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, which supports a postgraduate academic year of research, study, or English teaching in one of about 140 countries. Of seven graduating seniors and recent alumni named semi-finalists in the competition, three were offered awards and one was designated an alternate. Priscilla Riggs (‘26) will teach English in South Korea, Brent Andrews (‘19) will pursue a master’s degree in Global Health at National Taiwan University, and Aurora Spelz (‘24) will teach English in Jordan. Kate Hart (‘17) was designated an alternate for a master’s degree program at the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom. 

Recent graduate Emma Bunch (‘25) earned a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship (NSF GRF), established by the NSF to support individuals who demonstrate potential to make significant contributions in STEM research. The Fellowship supports up to three years of graduate study with an annual stipend of $37,000 and a $16,000 cost of education allowance.  

For more details about these and other student and alumni achievements in national scholarship competition, see the News page of the Office of Scholar Development.

About the Office of Scholar Development (OSD): OSD helps students make more possible by applying for national scholarships to fund “academic extras” such as study abroad, research, professional experience, and more. By conceptualizing and revising the stories they tell in application essays and interviews, students better understand their strengths, interests, and purpose—and explore multiple possible pathways to that work.