Jaelynne Surface, a senior at Oak Hill High School, has been awarded $10,000 per year for four years in attendance at Davis & Elkins College by way of the Citizens Bank of West Virginia Emerging Leaders Scholarship.  The sum of this scholarship reaches a total of $40,000 over four years.

Davis & Elkins College, Citizens Bank of West Virginia, and WDTV have once again partnered for a fourth consecutive year to offer this unique scholarship competition.  All 2025 high school graduates, whether attending public, private, or homeschool, with a 3.00-or-higher GPA were eligible to apply.  Due to myriad exemplary applicants, D&E officials have once more extended offers of scholarships to a wealth of high-caliber students, in addition to the selection of one student who received a full, four-year grand prize scholarship.

Applicants were required to submit a list of engagements across high school and within their respective communities, along with an essay centered on the topic, “If you receive this scholarship, how will you pay it forward to the state of West Virginia?”

Surface, hailing from Oak Hill, West Virginia, is the daughter of Joshua and Michelle Halstead, of Oak Hill, West Virginia.  As a student at Oak Hill High School, she has participated in several scholastic and community-based organizations, including her service as a member of the Fayette County Youth Coalition and Fayette County Teen Court.  Surface is also a member of Oak Hill High’s Honor Society, president of Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) and is a business student at Fayette Institute of Technology.

At Davis & Elkins College, Surface plans to pursue a major in Business and a minor in Law.

Davis & Elkins College offers more than 40 academic programs.  Multiple scholarship opportunities are available including the College’s annual $5.4 million investment in West Virginia students.  D&E extends heartfelt congratulations to all Emerging Leaders applicants and winners, who are undoubtedly the leaders of tomorrow by way of their distinction and excellence.