Horatio Alger, a 19th century American author, wrote books with the inspiring theme of onward and upward.

Thursday, September 09, 1999

Horatio Alger, a 19th century American author, wrote books with the inspiring theme of onward and upward. The heroes of his books almost always had the same qualities: moral, brave, generous, kind, diligent, industrious and persevering. Success was earned by hard work and right action.

On Wednesday morning, seven students that best exhibited those qualities were recognized at Austin High School. One AHS senior was awarded a $25,000 scholarship from the Horatio Alger Association. Four more students were awarded $5,000 per year renewable scholarships from the Hormel Foundation and two more received $500 achievement scholarships.

As AHS Principal Julia Espe said, the seven are anything but typical students. It was a morning, the principal said, that would remain in her mind forever.

"It was an emotional morning," Espe said. "Richard Knowlton, the Horatio Alger Association and the Hormel Foundation have changed the course of these kids lives today. They didn’t have the means to go on to post-secondary education before. Now they do."

The criteria for selecting the scholarship winners weren’t typical either. Although grades were a factor, the winners were selected because they had worked hard to overcome obstacles to achieve their goals.

Take David Carroll, the National Horatio Alger Scholarship winner. An adopted Korean, Carroll was diagnosed with clinical depression his sophomore year. His grades slipped.

"It took quite a bit to get over that hump," Carroll said.

Now his grades are climbing back up, he’s involved in soccer, wrestling (provided his grades stay up), track, 4-H, FFA, drama and diversity club. He’s looking forward to going to college and contemplating a degree in Liberal Arts. Carroll is the son of Richard and Rosalie Carroll and the youngest of four children. Older siblings are John, Katie and Kim.

"I’ve been able to push the depression aside," the AHS senior said. "I try to focus on other things. Some days are hard, other days I hardly notice. Now my goals are to finish high school and accomplish the goals I’ve set for myself."

As part of being selected as the National Horatio Alger Scholarship winner, Carroll will also attend an all-expenses paid National Scholars Conference in Washington, D.C. in the spring.

The conference is a four-day firsthand exploration of the opportunities available in America’s free enterprise system as well as giving the national scholars insight into the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government.

"He’s been an outstanding young man," senior counselor Jodi Bromeland said. "He’s battled depression, hung in there, kept his grades up and been involved at school."

While the selection of the National Scholar was entirely in the hands of the Horatio Alger Association, the other scholarships were made possible through the Hormel Foundation and Richard Knowlton.

The four Horatio Alger/ Hormel Foundation Scholars were Courtney Wyant, Catherine Inthisane, Nakisha Phillips and Vanessa Newman – each received a $5,000 per year renewable college scholarship.

Horatio Alger Achievement Scholars ($500 each) were Genna Halleland and Tessa Bina.

The day itself – and the scholarships – came about after AHS was declared a Horatio Alger School of Excellence last spring, an achievement that led to 10 AHS students being eligible for and applying for the Horatio Alger Scholarship as well the school getting to host an all-day Youth Seminar.

Note: More on the Youth Seminar in Friday’s Herald.