Illinois State University announced 14 students were selected as Robert G. Bone Scholars for the 2020-2021 school year.  

The Bone Scholarship, the highest university-wide honor given to undergraduate students, includes a monetary award from the Bone Scholarship endowment. Recipients of the award will be featured in display at the Bone Student CenterThe 14 new Scholars will be introduced to university administrators, the selection committee, and to current and alumni Bone Scholars during a luncheon on September 20.  

The scholarship is named in honor of the late Robert G. Bone, president of Illinois State University from 1956-1967. Bone Scholars are selected through a rigorous campus-wide competition based on their scholarly achievements, and their engagement and leadership in activities within the university community and beyond. Invited finalists submit a comprehensive portfolio including several essays and statements, a project, and letters of recommendation. The mean grade point average of this year’s Bone Scholars is 3.96 on a 4.0 scale. 

The new Bone Scholars are:  

  • Andrew Bilgri, a music education major from Quincy 
  • Jake Breit, a history major from Mokena 
  • Andrew Brodbeck, a special education major from Canton 
  • Kathryn Bruce, a history and anthropology major from Bensenville 
  • Mary Crompton, a biological sciences major from Iowa City, Iowa 
  • Bethany Ekwonwa, a legal studies and politics and government major from Hoffman Estates  
  • Jacqueline Epperson, a geology major from Blue Mound 
  • Jake Gillum,  an exercise science major from Metamora  
  • Kaytlin Halperin, an early childhood education major from Bloomington 
  • Trevar Moran, an environmental health major from Fairbury  
  • Lauren Siemer, a music therapy major from Teutopolis 
  • Emily Swiderski, a nursing major from Arlington Heights 
  • Nicole Vasquez, a pre-veterinary medicine major from Plainfield  
  • Brittany Weber, a sustainable and renewable energy major from Saybrook