Charlotte Borland Named 2018 Lilly Endowment Community Scholar

Charlotte Borland, a current senior at Huntington North High School, is recipient of the 2018 Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship in Huntington County.

The scholarship, awarded through the Huntington County Community Foundation, affords Borland four years of otherwise unreimbursed full tuition and required fees to an accredited public or private nonprofit college or university in Indiana, as well as a special allocation of up to $900 for required books and equipment. She is pursuing an undergraduate degree in Pre-Dentistry (Biology or Biochemistry) and a possible minor in Business with career plans of becoming an orthodontist.

Borland is the daughter of Dale and Robert Borland of Huntington. A National Honor Society member, her high school career included being a freshman mentor, math tutor, and Student Council leader, as well as a cross-country and track and field athlete. Her community volunteer efforts benefited Operation Backyard, a meal ministry, Church of the Nazarene, HNHS Prom Closet, American Red Cross, Marion Public Library Children’s Department, Conner West Walkathon, Angel Tree, and a nursing home. Borland is the 37^th Lilly Endowment Community Scholar representing Huntington County.

“To receive the Lilly Scholarship is the ultimate honor for me. The Lilly Scholarship lifts the financial burden of attending a high quality institution in Indiana,” said Borland. “For me personally, being a triplet increases the pressures of affording a quality college. With the Lilly, I can focus on pursuing my long-term dream of becoming an orthodontist. I am so thankful to the committee for not only seeing my potential, but leaving me feeling truly encouraged.”

Thirty-five Huntington County high-school seniors applied this year. After reviewing and scoring their applications, with personal information redacted, the HCCF Scholarship Committee, comprised of seven community volunteers, invited twelve candidates to an initial interview. After individually scoring each candidates’ interview performance the committee re-tallied total scores to reveal which three students qualified for a second interview. After the second interviews and again scoring and re-tallying, the scholarship committee submitted the name of their nominee and two alternates to Independent Colleges of Indiana (ICI) for approval of their selection of the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship recipient.

ICI is a nonprofit corporation that represents 31 regionally accredited, degree-granting, nonprofit, private colleges and universities in Indiana. Its Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program staff facilitates the entire Lilly Scholarship process, from application to selection approval to paying the tuition bills.

The primary purposes of the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program are 1) to help raise the level of educational attainment in Indiana; 2) to increase awareness of the beneficial roles Indiana community foundations can play in their communities; and 3) to encourage and support the efforts of current and past Lilly Endowment Community Scholars to engage with each other and with Indiana business, governmental, educational, nonprofit and civic leaders to improve the quality of life in Indiana generally and in local communities throughout the state. Since 1998, the Lilly Endowment, Inc. has funded 4,340 scholarships, with 143 additional awarded in 2018. The total cost for tuition and book stipend to date is over $372 million.