09 Wells Scholars Announced at IU Includes VHS Graduate

Indiana University announced that 18 entering freshmen and two current IU juniors will join the more than 420 others who have been named Wells Scholars since the first class enrolled in 1990.

Sonia Phadke, of Valparaiso, Ind., valedictorian and a graduate of Valparaiso High School with an International Baccalaureate Diploma was among those announced as 2009 Wells Scholars. A National Merit Scholar, an AP Scholar and a Hoosier Scholar, Phadke was a four-year member of the Science Olympiad team, winning 14 state medals and the 2008 national Gold Medal in the Sounds of Music event. The team twice finished second in state and 11th in the nation. She twice won first place in Indiana in the National Spanish Exam and was a member of Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica. She also was a member of the Quiz Bowl team, which qualified for state competition three years, and the Spell Bowl team, which qualified for state two years. She served as president of the Valparaiso Model United Nations delegation, secretary of National Honor Society, vice president of the concert orchestra, and president of the chamber orchestra. A violist in various music ensembles in her school, she received a Gold Medal in state competition. She was a CASS (Creating a Safer School) mentor to middle school students and a tutor for English as a new language; and she co-founded, co-produced and co-hosted a weekly radio talk show, "In the Know Show," that focused on politics, music and other issues. Phadke plans to major in biology and political science and prepare for a career in medicine.

The scholarship, created in honor of the late IU Chancellor Herman B Wells, ranks among the most competitive and prestigious awards offered by any American university. Wells Scholars have gone on to win more than 50 national and international scholarships, fellowships and grants, such as the Rhodes, Truman, Marshall, Soros, Mitchell, Churchill, Fulbright and Goldwater.

Today, many Wells Scholar alumni contribute to Indiana as residents, and others are studying or working throughout the country and overseas as attorneys, doctors, teachers, business people, clergy and artists. Some have gone on to clerk for Indiana and U.S. Supreme Court justices, are engaged in international relief and service efforts or are scholars at renowned educational institutions such as MIT, Yale and IU itself. There are Wells Scholars currently serving in the Armed Forces and other positions in government.

On his 90th birthday, Chancellor Wells was officially presented with the prestigious scholarship program as a gift from his many friends and admirers. After his death in the spring of 2000, this community of talented and dedicated young scholars remains as a permanent legacy of his educational vision.

Incoming freshmen Wells Scholars receive full tuition and course-related fees, as well as a living stipend, for four years of undergraduate study on the Bloomington campus. Newly named recipients who already are students at IU receive tuition, fees and a stipend for their remaining undergraduate years.

The Wells program also offers special seminars; an optional year of study abroad; support for a summer research or service project, creative activity or internship; and a wide range of extracurricular events and activities. The Wells program emphasizes close interaction with faculty, academic and career advising, opportunities for community service and contact with distinguished visitors.

Freshman Wells Scholars are nominated by their high schools or the IU Office of Admissions and selected for having demonstrated exceptional qualities of character, leadership and distinction both inside and outside of the classroom. Internal Wells Scholars are nominated by IU Bloomington faculty.

The list of the 20 top students to receive Wells Scholarships follows:

  • Kaitlin Blatt, of Cincinnati
  • Adam Friedman, of Chesterfield, Mo.
  • Kasey Greer, of Plymouth, Ind.
  • Mackenzie Hammel, of Cincinnati
  • D. Christian Hines, of Terre Haute, Ind.
  • Alexis Howard, of Bourbon, Ind.
  • Eric Jiang, of Kokomo, Ind.
  • Andrew Johns, of Indianapolis
  • Gabriel King, of South Bend, Ind.
  • Jarrod Lowery, of Batesville, Ind.
  • Casey McGlasson, of Sullivan, Ind.
  • Mohsin Mukhtar, of Plainfield, Ind.
  • Isak Osagyefo Nti Asare, of Laramie, Wyo.
  • Jasmine Page, of Indianapolis
  • Sonia Phadke, of Valparaiso, Ind.
  • Sarah Siebertz, of Elkhart, Ind.
  • Barrett Tenbarge, of Carmel, Ind.
  • Henry Thomas, of Wilmette, Ill.
  • Grant Williams, of Munster, Ind.
  • Jason Wong, of Bloomington, Ind.

Photo courtsey of Indiana University.