The winners, who make up the 10th class of Toyota Community Scholars, were chosen from a pool of nearly 9,000 students nationwide nominated by their schools. To be eligible, students must be proven leaders both in the classroom and in their communities.
Based on its accomplishments, the 2006 class learned at an early age that "giving back" to the community was not an obligation, but, rather, a way of life. As one Scholar, Tyler Sanchez of Racine, Wis., put it: "My life has been enriched through my community service, and I see myself one day as a responsible business executive playing a major role in my community."
For the 2006 class, their dreams of making a difference became reality through programs ranging from raising money to help pay for 300 families' winter heating bills to recycling over 80,000 tons of household goods (furniture, appliances, clothing, toys, books) and distributing them to thousands of needy individuals to creating a diversity program that is now implemented in five high schools.
"This tenth class of Toyota Scholars, like every group before them, has accomplished so much at such a young age," said Irv Miller, TMS group vice president of corporate communications. "Their dedication to academics and community service is an inspiration to all of us. It is exciting to imagine where their lives will take them as the future leaders of America."
The scholarships are valued at $20,000 or $10,000 each, over four years, for study at a four-year college or university starting in the fall of 2006. Since the Toyota Community Scholars program began in 1997, TMS has awarded over $11 million in scholarships to 1,000 students across the U.S.
Emily Evans, a Toyota Community Scholar from Hudson, Ohio, is a prime example of the dedication to community service exhibited by this year's class. As the founder of "Children's Aid," Evans has raised over $17,000 for the Suzhou Children's Welfare Center in China. But this project is much more than just fund-raising for the orphanage. Evans has traveled twice to China to work with the children, many of whom have physical or mental disabilities and were abandoned by their parents.
Because of her dedication, numerous children have received medical procedures, including cleft lip and palate repairs, surgery to correct spina bifida, heart surgery, and skin grafts for burn victims.
In all, over 100 children living in the orphanage have been helped by Evans and "Children's Aid," which boasts over 200 supporters.
Consequently, Evans, like many of the Scholars, found community service to be the roadmap to what she wants to do in the future. "By pursuing East Asian Studies and law, I hope to be able to work with families to take the anxiety, uncertainty, and cost out of international adoption. This could be through pro-bono work, as an adoption lawyer, or by using my contacts with orphanages to match children with families."
The Toyota Community Scholars program is administered by Educational Testing Services in Princeton, N.J. The 12 national winners ($20,000 each) and 88 regional winners ($10,000 each) were selected by a panel of college and university admissions officials from across the U.S.
The scholarship winners were guests of honor tonight at an awards banquet in Louisville that was attended by education, community, business and government leaders. Bernard Kinsey, an internationally recognized expert and leader in the field of urban revitalization and economic development, was the keynote speaker.
The two-and-a-half-day program included a tour of Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky, Inc., in Georgetown, which builds the Camry, Avalon and Solara vehicles. In addition, the Scholars cruised the Ohio River on the Belle of Louisville (a historic paddle wheeler), and participated in a "ride and drive" that put them behind the wheel of five Toyota vehicles: the new FJ Cruiser and Yaris, plus the family of Scion vehicles: xA, xB, and tC.
Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), U.S.A., Inc. is the marketing, sales, distribution and customer service arm of Toyota, Lexus and Scion in the United States, marketing products and services through a network of 1,427 Toyota, Lexus and Scion dealers in 49 states. Established in 1957, TMS and its subsidiaries also are involved in distribution logistics, motorsports, and research and development.