Wichita State University has selected two recipients for the Richard D. Smith Scholarship, the university's largest scholarship award. Sallie Longwell of Valley Center, Kansas, and Caroline Love of Norfolk, Nebraska, will receive more than $80,000 over four years.  

The 2026 recipients of the Smith Scholarship have been active in their schools and communities.  

Valley Center (Kansas) High School 

Sallie Longwell plans to study pre-nursing at Wichita State and has been active throughout all four years of high school, participating in the dance team, marching band and Fellowship of Christian Athletes. She also served as drum major for multiple years and is a member of the National Honor Society, SADD/SAGE Team and Health Occupations Students of America. 

Longwell serves as senior class president for student council and was named Valley Center Fall Festival Junior Citizen of the Year. She volunteers in her community and church while balancing a part-time job. 

“To say I am blessed is an understatement,” Longwell said. “This scholarship is truly the opportunity of a lifetime, and I could not be more grateful to the Richard D. Smith family. I am thrilled to attend Wichita State, to get involved on campus and to pursue my dream of becoming a nurse.” 

Norfolk (Nebraska) Senior High School 

Caroline Love plans to study music theatre at Wichita State and has been active for four years in high school choir and show choir. Her honors include being named Outstanding Freshman, Sophomore and Junior, as well as earning Best Soloist at the Nebraska Choral Directors Association Jazz Festival in 2025. She has also served as the soprano section leader for multiple years. 

In addition to music, Love has participated in theater all four years of high school, performing in 10 productions and lettering each year. She received an Outstanding Performer Award annually and was named Best Newcomer in 2022. She also served in the student council and was a member of the National Honor Society. 

“Being able to call myself one of the Richard Smith Scholars has made my dreams feel even more reachable,” Love said. “Having the opportunity to come out of college debt-free is beyond the best of words! I am so blessed to be able to continue my passion for musical theater at Wichita State and cannot wait to learn, have the best of times and create long-life friendships!” 

In 2022, a bequest from Richard “Dick” Smith’s estate gifted $5.5 million to Wichita State with the intent that it funds scholarships to cover all college-related expenses, including tuition, fees, books and housing, with awards open to undergraduates in any field. Smith was a longtime Wichitan and the founder of Range Oil Co. He died in 2021. 

Wichita State University is Kansas' only urban public research university, enrolling more than 25,000 students between its main campus and the WSU Campus of Applied Sciences and Technology (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- and defense-funded engineering R&D and No. 9 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.

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