Student receives summer Gilman International Scholarship to help youth
MANHATTAN — Cheyanne Helms, junior in anthropology and pre-medicine, Washington, is the third Kansas State University student to be awarded a summer Gilman International Scholarship.
Thomas Meek and Crystal Miller were announced in March. The scholarship awards each student up to $5,000 to study abroad in summer 2018. Helms will travel to the Dominican Republic as a volunteer for Deportes Para La Vida, a summer camp for youth development and part of the DREAM Project.
Congressionally funded and established by the International Academic Opportunity Act of 2000, the Gilman Scholarship Program helps U.S. undergraduate students at two-year or four-year colleges or universities participate in study abroad programs worldwide.
"The Gilman Scholarship will allow me to continue my education outside of the classroom, as this will be a service-learning experience," Helms said. "I will have the opportunity to share my skills and knowledge with others while also connecting with and learning from new people. I will obtain firsthand experience about the lives, values and beliefs of others, which will help me in my future endeavors in the health field."
Helms is a member of the Relay for Life leadership team and a coach for Girls on the Run. She is involved in International Buddies, Christian Challenge, HandsOn K-State and the Kansas Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Ambassadors. She has received a Kansas State Scholarship, Hagan Foundation Scholarship, K-State Leadership Scholarship, Kansas Pony Express Scholarship, Lesley and Mary Huntley Family Scholarship, Mansfield Family Scholarship, United Bank and Trust Scholarship, Washington County Booster Club Scholarship, Baskerville Family Scholarship, Paukstelis Memorial Scholarship, Veronica Bronebake Scholarship and Education Abroad Planning Scholarship.
Advised by Michael Wesch, professor of anthropology, and Jessica Falcone, associate professor of anthropology, Helms lived in a retirement community as part of her undergraduate research to study elderly people's transition to dependent living and their sense of worth. She also volunteers for Morning Girl Program; Second Helping, a food preparation organization; and the Flint Hills Volunteer Center.
A graduate of Washington County High School, Helms is the daughter of Rodney and Nicole Helms, Washington.
If faculty know of students interested in education abroad opportunities, the next Gilman Scholarship application deadline is Oct. 2 for spring 2019 and the summer 2019 early application cycle. For more information about the Gilman or other education abroad opportunities, contact Sara Boro, education abroad advisor, at seboro@k-state.edu.
