With the support of a Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship, Katie Nuss found her purpose in teaching others.

Katie, a Kankakee Valley High School graduate and 2004 scholarship recipient, attended the University of Notre Dame through funding provided by the Lilly Endowment. During her time at Notre Dame, Katie took part in a university summer learning program and worked as part of the staff of Campagna Academy in Northwest Indiana.

“My summer there completely changed my career trajectory,” Katie said.

Sharing the Gift of Education

Teaching became her aspirational focus after Campagna Academy, a center that provides therapeutic support to children and families through foster care, residential treatment, and substance abuse programs.

“I chose a major which gave me a well-rounded foundation, supported the twists and turns my career has taken and made it possible for me to find success in graduate school as well as professionally,” Katie said.

After graduating from Notre Dame, she spent six years in Louisville, Kentucky, teaching English and theater. While there, Katie earned master’s degrees in secondary education and educational psychology from Ball State University.

Today, she is a school improvement specialist for the Texas Education Agency while pursuing her Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction at the University of Houston.

The Lasting Legacy of a Lilly Scholarship

Looking back, Katie said the education afforded by the Lilly Endowment Scholarship continues to enrich her life today. Her education at Notre Dame provided her with the academic preparation she needed before graduate school and life-long friends she says have become more like family in the years since.

“None of this would have happened without my summer at Campagna Academy,” she believes. “I am forever grateful for that experience and for the people I met during that time.”

Scholarships to Students in Jasper and Newton Counties make lives better

The Lilly Endowment, in partnership with the Jasper Newton Foundation, helps students like Katie Nuss accomplish their dreams and better all of our neighborhoods, cities or towns, and state.

To read more stories about community members like Katie, visit www.JasperNewtonFoundation.org/get-connected/.

To learn more about scholarship opportunities available through the Jasper Newton Foundation, please visit our scholarship page at www.JasperNewtonFoundation.org/apply-for-scholarships/.

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