Six students with majors in the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) have been named 2017–2018 Bone Scholars.

They are Madeline Blackwell, Roscoe, English education; Holly Buescher, Normal, English education; Mary Fischer, Fort Scott (Kansas), molecular and cellular biology; Carleigh Gray, Woodbridge (VA), mass media; Kiley Walsh, Mount Prospect, Spanish education; and Wesley Ward, Normal, finance and political science. The students were honored at a luncheon September 17 in the Bone Student Center attended by President Larry Dietz, Provost Jan Murphy, and Dean Gregory Simpson, in addition to family members and friends.

“The College is very proud of these gifted students,” said Simpson. “Their accomplishments are inspiring. I am also very grateful to the extraordinarily talented faculty members who have mentored our students.” The luncheon marked the 50th anniversary of the Bone Scholarship program.

The Robert G. Bone Scholarships constitute the highest awards Illinois State University confers on its undergraduate students. These scholarships were established in 1967 to honor former University President Robert Bone, and they recognize broad academic achievement as well as service and leadership, on campus and in the community. The Bone Scholarships are administered by The Honors Program. Rocio Rivadeneyra, Ph.D., serves as its director.

Each year, 14 students at Illinois State University are named Bone Scholars. In addition to six students in the College of Arts and Sciences, an additional eight students from the Colleges of Applied Science and Technology, Business, Education, and Fine Arts were also named 2017–2018 Bone Scholars.