Chloe Travelstead, a senior at Fairmont Senior High School, has been awarded a $10,000 per year Citizens Bank of West Virginia Emerging Leaders Scholarship to Davis & Elkins College for a total of $40,000 over four years.
Davis & Elkins, Citizens Bank of West Virginia and WDTV partnered to offer the unique scholarship competition. All 2022 West Virginia high school graduates, whether attending a public, private or homeschool, with a 3.25 or higher GPA were eligible to apply. Initial plans were for only one student to receive a full, four-year scholarship. However, with the high caliber of applicants, College officials decided to extend additional scholarships to top tier candidates.
Applicants were required to submit a list of high school and community activities, along with an essay based on the topic, “If you receive this scholarship, how will you pay it forward to the state of West Virginia?”
Travelstead is the daughter of Mark and Stephanie Travelstead of Fairmont. At Fairmont Senior, she is vice president of Mu Alpha Theta and a member of the National Honor Society, Science Honorary, student council, Interact Club and Teen Court. On the athletic field, she is a member of the Polar Bears varsity lacrosse team and Mountain State Lacrosse Club. In 2021, she was selected to attend West Virginia Rhododendron Girls State.
At Davis & Elkins College, Travelstead plans to major in criminology and psychology and eventually work as an advocate for victims of domestic and interpersonal violence.
“I plan to spend my service time at Davis & Elkins College volunteering with a local women’s domestic violence shelter and with the West Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence,” Travelstead wrote in her essay. “Ultimately, I would like to work at the Federal Bureau of Investigation where I can focus on crimes related to violence against women.”
Davis & Elkins College offers more than 45 academic programs. Multiple scholarship opportunities are available including the College’s annual $5.4 million investment in West Virginia students. For additional information, call 304-637-1230 or visit www.dewv.edu/admissions.
Chloe Travelstead
