Skip to main content

News Release

Wichita State chooses 12 high school seniors as finalists for Distinguished Scholarship Invitational

Jan. 28, 2025
By WSU Strategic Communications

Contact for News Reporters: Lainie Mazzullo-Hart, director of communication, 316-978-3409 or lainie.mazzullo@wichita.edu.

High-resolution image available

WSU Logos

High-resolution images available for media use.

Wichita State University has selected the top 12 finalists in the annual Distinguished Scholarship Invitational (DSI).

They are:

  • Kit Boor, Eisenhower High School
  • Tyllor Childers, Wichita Northwest High School
  • Elijah DeFore, Wichita Northeast Magnet
  • Luke Hoy, Valley Center High School
  • Mei-Li Hunt, Wesclin Junior-Senior High School (Illinois)
  • Lane Lamping, Basehor-Linwood High School
  • Maci Morgan, Wichita Heights High School
  • Vy Nguyen, Wichita East High School
  • Lakshmishree Sivakumar, Wichita East High School
  • Maddie Sohm, Russell High School
  • Beckett Sollars, Park Hill High School (Missouri)
  • Aidan Thibodeau, Herington High School

The students competed in DSI Nov. 23, with 551 total students competing. Three of the finalists will be selected as recipients of the Harry Gore Memorial $64,000 scholarship, which are among the largest undergraduate awards in the Midwest.

To be invited to compete in the invitational, students had to have a 27 or higher ACT score, or a 3.5 or higher GPA, or rank in the top 10% of their class. The 12 finalists this year have an average ACT score of 27 and average GPA of 3.88.

Once invited, students completed an application, including essays, and competed in an on-campus leadership competition. Finalists came back to campus Jan. 23 for final interviews.

The announcement of the Gore Scholars will be at 11:30 a.m. Friday, Jan. 31 in the Marcus Welcome Center. All finalists will receive competitive scholarship packages to attend Wichita State in the fall of 2025.

About Wichita State University

Wichita State University is Kansas' only urban public research university, enrolling more than 23,000 students between its main campus and WSU Tech, including students from every state in the U.S. and more than 100 countries. Wichita State and WSU Tech are recognized for being student centered and innovation driven.

Located in the largest city in the state with one of the highest concentrations in the United States of jobs involving science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), Wichita State University provides uniquely distinctive and innovative pathways of applied learning, applied research and career opportunities for all of our students. The National Science Foundation ranked WSU No. 1 in the nation for aerospace engineering R&D, No. 2 for industry-funded engineering R&D and No. 8 overall for engineering R&D.

The Innovation Campus, which is a physical extension of the Wichita State University main campus, is one of the nation’s largest and fastest-growing research/innovation parks, encompassing over 120 acres and is home to a number of global companies and organizations.

Follow Wichita State on social media:

©