BETTENDORF, IOWA (May 22, 2020) — Bailey Nelson always knew she was going to be a teacher. What was unclear to her throughout high school though was how she was going to pay for college to get there.
Nelson credits the Quad Cities Community Foundation and its donors with landing just where she wanted to be — in the classroom. She just wrapped up her first year of teaching as a third-grade teacher in the Davenport Community School District. She said it was scholarship money and support that helped her achieve her dream.
Through the Community Foundation, Nelson received the Davenport Central High School Teacher Scholarship, providing her the resources and momentum to graduate with her associate’s degree in just one year. Two years after that, she graduated with her bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Western Illinois University.
“The scholarship from the Community Foundation allowed me to focus on additional opportunities, like working for AmeriCorps, where I was able to work in a bilingual daycare for a year,” Nelson said. Those connections led her to volunteer with local food pantries, and help with community literacy activities. Nelson will teach middle school science next year and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in education from Western Illinois University with a graduate certificate in education policy.
“I will be forever grateful for the opportunities that this scholarship provided me and allowed me to pursue,” she said.
She’s not alone. There is a long line of success stories born from the opportunities afforded to students who receive scholarships through the foundation each year, said Kelly Thompson, vice president of grantmaking and community initiatives at the Community Foundation. “We are so inspired when we see what doors these scholarships open for students. We wouldn’t be able to make these contributions to our community if it weren’t for our generous donors, who see the potential and act to make a difference.”
This year, the Community Foundation awarded more than half a million dollars in scholarship dollars to students, including more than $367,000 in new one-time and renewable scholarships awarded to 43 Quad Cities-area students. Six students received multiple awards. “The wonderful thing is about scholarships is that they have a way of creating perpetual giving,” Thompson said. “These students will never forget this generosity, and they in turn will become givers to their communities in both big ways and small.”
The following students received 2020 scholarships:
- Amelia Balk, Davenport High School — Mariah Becker Memorial Scholarship
- Madison Boyer, Sherrard High School — Clifford and Louise King Scholarship
- Harrison Brown, Rivermont Collegiate High School—Dr and Mrs Yang Ho Rhee Scholarship; Jane and Clem Werner Scholarship
- Kathleen Byrne, Bettendorf High School — Elise Brett Scholarship
- Layken Bytnar, Bettendorf High School — Corky Kress Golf Scholarship
- Steven Christensen, Moline High School — Richard J Collins Scholarship
- Man Dim, Moline High School — Richard J Collins Scholarship
- Lillian Duffield, Davenport High School — Jane and Clem Werner Scholarship
- Galena Fessler, Rock Island High School — Paul and Barbara Yamber Memorial Stem Scholarship
- Stephanie Garcia, United Township High School — Quad Cities Mexican American Organization Scholarship
- Taylor Garvin, Wilton High School — 2020 Helen Maurer Simmons Scholarship
- Sophia Gluba, Assumption High School — James W Victor Scholarship; Sophia N Hapke Scholarship
- Sheridan Hank, Mercer County High School — Bryant-Holmes Scholarship for Mercer County High School
- Delanee Hansen, Davenport West High School — Kelly Marie McQuate Memorial Scholarship
- Jacob Hansen, Davenport High School — Jane and Clem Werner Scholarship; Verna Kaucher Scholarship
- Shyisha Hodges, Davenport Central High School — Donna Jean Arzberger Memorial Scholarship; Sophia N Hapke Scholarship
- Seth Hoffman, Muscatinie High School — Mike Condon Memorial Scholarship
- Peter Hurd, Bettendorf High School — Jane and Clem Werner Scholarship
- Ashley Johnson, Rock Island High School — August and Edna Zahatko Scholarship
- Jonathan Johnson, Bettendorf High School — Dr GO and Arlene Schmiedel Scholarship
- Makenzie Jones, Riverdale High School — Edwin R Adland and Ruth H Adland Scholarship; Louis F Bulechek Memorial Scholarship
- Renata Lara, Moline High School — Richard J Collins Scholarship
- Jenya Loughney, Pleasant Valley High School — Gustav A and Gerda HC Anderson Scholarship
- Doaa Maanaoui, United Township High School — Ligino Family Scholarship
- Jennifer Mahl, Davenport Central High School — Central High School Scholarship for Teacher Education
- Debora Mbombo, Moline High School — William H Kleinschmidt Scholarship
- Laura Millage, West Liberty High School — Great River Bend Cyclone Award Scholarship
- Alexia Moore, Davenport Central High School — Morency Family Scholarship
- Meghan Nahnybida, Davenport West High School — Verna Kaucher Scholarship
- Prakruti Pancholi, Pleasant Valley High School — Jayne Lee Andreesen Memorial Scholarship
- Adam Parcel, Davenport West High School — Jane and Clem Werner Scholarship
- Roger Pavey, Pleasant Valley High School — Dearrel Bates Memorial Scholarship
- Larissa Pothoven, Rock Island High School — Rock Island High School Class of 1956 Scholarship
- Evelyn Quiroz, United Township High School — Morency Family Scholarship
- Teanna Randolph, Moline High School — Morency Family Scholarship
- Emma Rapp, Sterling High School — Morency Family Scholarship
- Amalia Sandoval, United Township High School — Gene S Duke Scholarship
- Sarah Schwien, Davenport West High School — Bill and Hilda Macomber; Alta Kahl Scholarship; Sophia N Hapke Scholarship
- Ella Scrutchfield, Moline High School — Richard J Collins Scholarship
- Caitlin Steimle, Assumption High School — John R Kiley Memorial Scholarship; Morency Family Scholarship
- Gwendalyn Waggoner, Rock Island High School — Herman and Sarah Segal Scholarship
- Kaylee Wise, Moline High School — Richard J Collins Scholarship
- Roban Worrick, Central High School — Morency Family Scholarship
The Quad Cities Community Foundation is home to hundreds of endowment funds — started by individuals and organizations — that create a financial foundation for non-profits and support the Quad Cities region today, and far into the future. For more information, visit www.QCCommunityFoundation.org.
