Five NIU students were recently named recipients of the Forward, Together Forward Scholarship.

The students will each receive a scholarship of $4,000, said Anne Hardy, director of the scholarship office.

“Being selected as a Forward, Together Forward Scholarship recipient is one of the highest honors a student can receive,” Hardy said.

Hardy said the funding for the $4,000 scholarship comes from 1,700 donors to the university. New recipients are selected each year. Hardy said the application for the 2013-2014 year will be available by early September 2012.

Daihee Cho

Daihee Cho, a junior accountancy major, said the committee told him he was the first international student to be a recipient of the scholarship.

“I was very honored,” Cho said. “I wanted to talk to the families [of the Feb. 14, 2008 shooting victims] and keep them updated. I want to be a close NIU community member to them.”

Cho said he would like to go to graduate school, work in a public accounting firm, be an accountant in Korea, go to law school, work as an international lawyer and then become a politician.

Rachael Bardell

Rachael Bardell, senior mathematical sciences major, said the scholarship stands for more than just a monetary award.

“It is one of NIU’s most prestigious scholarships because of what it stands for,” Bardell said. “It is a way to honor and remember Gayle [Dubowski], Ryanne [Mace], Daniel [Parmenter], Catalina [Garcia], and Julianna [Gehant]. Recipients are not simply chosen based on academic merit. Strength of character and characteristics Gayle, Ryanne, Daniel, Julianna, and Catalina all displayed, are also considered. In summary, you also receive the charge to continue to honor the five students lost on Feb. 14, 2008 through your actions and service.”

Bardell said she was honored and humbled to be named a recipient of the scholarship.

“Receiving this scholarship is one of the biggest honors a student can achieve,” Bardell said. “I am honored to have been awarded this scholarship, humbled by the many contributions my peers have made to the university and community, and also motivated to do the most I can with my time at Northern. It is an opportunity to honor the five students lost on February 14, 2008; to take every day and do something with it.”

Eric Solomon

Eric Solomon, junior communications major, said by receiving this scholarship he has the honor to participate in the Feb. 14 ceremony.

“The money is obviously important, but to be able to interact with the victims families and try to provide a bit of comfort to them in such an unfortunate circumstance is what really means the most to me,” Solomon said. “I applied for it because I try to be a leader and a role model on a daily basis, and this scholarship represents every bit of that objective.”

Solomon said he enjoys volunteer work and participates in Hope Haven, a homeless shelter in DeKalb, and was a big brother for the first two years of school.

“My goal is to be a role model to the kids that I come in contact with and try to provide a positive influence,” Solomon said. “I am incredibly fortunate to be in college at a time like this, and if I can reach out to people who don’t have as much as I have, I will do everything I can to do that.”

Solomon said he hopes to include his volunteer work in his career.

Jenifer Camery

Jenifer Camery, junior elementary education major, would like to one day work as a classroom teacher and dance coach, according to an NIU Today article.

“Dance and helping kids grow are my passions in life,” Camery said in the article.

Camery volunteers for the Safe Passage Children’s Program, is a member of the Phi Beta Delta International Honors Society, works at the Founder’s Memorial Library, and donates her time to the Special Olympics.

Faith Stauersboll

Faith Stauersboll, sophomore nursing major, is vice president of the Lambda Sigma Sophomore Honors Society and the Honors Association, as well as a volunteer with Conexion Communidad and the Honors Program’s Birthday Boxes project.

Stauersboll said she would like to become a nurse to help people.

“A nurse is a person who helps people through the worst day of their life,” Stauersboll said in an NIU Today article. “I want to be that person. I want people to be able to trust in me to make them as comfortable as possible.”