Megan Seibel received the first Warrington Award Thursday at the Austin High School academic awards assembly.

"It's exciting," she said of the scholarship. "You must work hard. I appreciate it very much and it will be needed this fall when I go to college."

Seibel is one of 270 graduates from AHS this year. She will receive her diploma in commencement exercises scheduled Friday, June 7, at Riverside Arena, beginning

7 p.m.

Seibel plans to use the $4,000 scholarship this fall, when she begins classes at St. Thomas University, St. Paul, where she will be a pre-law student.

Sharon Ann and George Collias of Chicago, attended Thursday's assembly to witness Joe Brown, AHS principal, present the first-ever Warrington Award.

Sylvan T. Warrington died in 1999 at the age of 91. Sharon Ann Collias was one of three daughters of Mr. Warrington's.

In winning the inaugural Warrington Award, Seibel is one of 21 high distinction students in the ASH class of 2002.

She earned a perfect 4.0 grade point average in each of other four years of high school, according to Brown.

Seibel excelled in other endeavors as well. She set a new triple jump record this spring as a member of the AHS

girls track team and also set a Big Nine Conference long jump record.

The scholarship recipient is the daughter of Linda and the late Honorable Judge Michael H. Seibel. She has a younger brother, David, an eighth grader, and an older sister, Amanda, a 2000 AHS graduate who is now attending Luther College, Decorah, Iowa.

This summer she plans a vacation to Lake Tahoe with a friend after graduation before settling down in a regular work routine at Jerry's Other Place restaurant and then college classes in the fall.

The original list of 15 applicants for the scholarship was narrowed to five finalists before Seibel emerged the recipient.

"Her application was so good in all aspects and she is very well-spoken," said Sharon Collias. My father would be very pleased."

Mr. Warrington was one of 12 children born to an Austin farm family and the only one to go on to college, where he earned a master's in economics.

Three years ago, his daughter

contacted the Austin Public Schools about creating a scholarship in honor of her father. School district officials expressed their appreciation for the gesture. The Warrington Award is the second-largest individual scholarship presented a graduating AHS senior.

Mr. Warrington embarked on a distinguished career with the U.S. Department of Agriculture after helping develop frozen food technology that was used during World War II.

As first a country school student and later an AHS graduate at the age of 15, Mr. Warrington consistently showed curiosity about many things in life as well as a high skill level, too his descendants say.

That well-rounded character is also something his daughter, Sharon Ann Collias, and her husband, George

see in the AHS senior.

"You're a high achiever. He was a high achiever," said George Collias "That's exactly right. I'm sure my father would be extremely proud, because you are an achiever, too."

An obvious role model for other high school coeds, Seibel had this advice for underclassmen: "Get involved in something. You'll find your strengths."