GAMBIER — This year Kenyon College awarded the Austin E. Knowlton Memorial Scholarship to four students: first-year Jimmy Clark, sophomore Eden Stephey, junior Chase Frederick and senior Danaye Nixon. These scholarships support students from Ohio, often for their entire four years at Kenyon.
“This fund has allowed me to attend a rigorous, liberal arts college in my home state, which I love,” Stephey, from Tiffin, said.
Established in 2014 by the Austin E. Knowlton Foundation, Kenyon’s Knowlton Memorial Scholarship Fund provides financial aid to students who are interested in pursuing mathematics or related fields. To date, the Knowlton Foundation has awarded grants totaling $500,000 to Kenyon. These funds are invested in the College’s endowment, with income restricted for the Knowlton Memorial Scholarships.
Austin E. “Dutch” Knowlton was chair and owner of the Knowlton Construction Company, which completed over 600 significant construction projects throughout Ohio and the Midwest, including schools, hospitals, libraries and post offices. As a successful Ohio businessman and generous philanthropist, Knowlton worked to promote higher education and help his local community.
“Mathematics or other sciences can be applicable within the fields and outside of them in ways you wouldn’t expect,” said Nixon, a graduate of Mount Vernon High School. “The support from the Knowlton Foundation emphasizes the importance of studying mathematics and the sciences as subjects and means to make changes in society.”
Nixon is a math major who works in Kenyon’s Office of Admissions as a science tour guide and a senior fellow. She also is a tutor for statistics in Kenyon’s Math and Science Skills Center.
Stephey is a math major who plays on the women’s rugby team, performs with the Kenyon dance team, assists campus residents as a community advisor and serves on Social Board, which plans programs and events for students.
Frederick, from Dayton, is a physics major and serves as social chair for his fraternity, Beta Theta Pi.
Clark, from Mentor, is a member of Kenyon’s baseball team, assists Kenyon’s athletics department in facilitating volleyball matches and is part of a volunteer group that works to clean up the Kokosing River.
“This scholarship has helped me in every way academically. Attending Kenyon may have not been possible if it weren’t for the Austin E. Knowlton scholarship. I am very grateful for the generosity of the foundation,” Frederick said, urging students who are eligible for the scholarship to apply.
