Kansas State University

MANHATTAN -- Five high school seniors are receiving the Edgerley-Franklin Urban Leadership Scholarship from Kansas State University for their outstanding contributions to the urban communities in which they live.

The university received 87 applications for the scholarship, with a selection committee choosing 11 finalists to interview. Finalists participated in an on-campus interview and recognition day on March 15, with five students selected to receive the $3,000 scholarship. It is renewable up to three years with a 3.0 grade point average at the university.

The scholarship is made possible by the Edgerley and Franklin families and recognizes their continuous support to individuals from urban areas who support their communities. The scholarship was created in memory of Elsia Franklin, the wife of Bernard Franklin, a special assistant to the vice president for student life at Kansas State University. Elsia Franklin was committed to helping better the lives of young girls in urban Alabama.

The Edgerleys are longtime supporters of the university, contributing to a number of scholarships, funds and faculty chairs in the last 10 years, including the Paul B. and Sandra M. Edgerley business administration; the Paul B. Edgerley chair in business administration; the Robert M. Edgerley chair in international business, which honors Paul Edgerley's father; the Edgerley family chair in the College of Business Administration; and the President Wefald leadership chair in business administration.

Scholarship recipients and their high school include:

Yubisela Toledo, Liberal, Liberal High School; Geordy Williams, Overland Park, Shawnee Mission East High School; Navante Peacock, Campus High School, and Cipriana Sapien, Wichita South High School, both from Wichita; and Sergio Ortiz, Kansas City, Mo., Lincoln Prep Academy.

Finalists for the scholarship included: Jennifer Delzeit, Dodge City, Dodge City High School; Brytani Anderson, Kansas City, Kan., J.C. Harmon High School; Savannah Hoang, Olathe, Olathe East High School; Kiera Brown, Wichita, Wichita Northeast Magnet School; Megan Cantu, Crown Point, Ind., Crown Point High School; and Izabella Carmona, Glen Gardner, N.J., Voorhees High School.