Nine Lawrence County Students Selected for Rogers Scholars Youth Programs

Nine Lawrence County Students Selected for The Center for Rural Development’s Youth Programs

The Center for Rural Development honors nine Lawrence County students for being selected for its annual youth programs, Rogers Scholars and Rogers Explorers.

“We hope our communities will join us in congratulating the students on their selection for these highly competitive programs,” said Lonnie Lawson, President & CEO of The Center for Rural Development.

Three students from Lawrence County High School were selected for the Rogers Scholars program.

• Rikki Staniford, daughter of Rick and Darlene Staniford, of Louisa.
• SJ Lycans, son of Steven and Bianca Lycans, of Louisa.
• Mason Preston, son of D. Heath and Brandy C. Preston, of Louisa. 

Five students from Louisa Middle School were selected to attend the Rogers Explorers program.

• Hannah DeLong, the daughter of Corey and Rebecca DeLong, of Louisa.
• Emersyn Elliott was selected to attend camp. She is the daughter of Jason and Melissa Elliott, of Louisa.
• Maggie Johnson was selected to attend camp. She is the daughter of Scott and Molly Johnson, of Louisa.
• David Preston was selected to attend camp. He is the son of D. Heath and Brandy Preston, of Louisa.
• Cooper Smith was selected to attend camp. He is the son of Duke and Dana Smith, of Louisa.

One student from Fallsburg Elementary School was selected for the Rogers Explorers program.

• Casey Hovis is the daughter of Brian and April Hovis, of Louisa.

Due to the nature of the COVID 19 pandemic, The Center has had to make the difficult decision to forgo plans to host all of its summer camps during the summer of 2020.

“The Center’s youth programs are near and dear to my heart,” Lawson said.  “This was not an easy decision to make and we did not make it lightly.  Due to the state of emergency restrictions and the severe nature of this crisis, we feel it is in the best interest of all of our staff, the students, and their families, that we do not take any risks.  The health and wellbeing of our students has always been a top priority when we conduct our summer programs.  We had optimistically hoped that we could find a way to proceed normally, but we do not feel that is possible.  We recognize all of the hard work and dedication our students put into their acceptance for these programs and we hope they will continue working towards their goals for a successful future.”

Rogers Scholars is a youth leadership program targeted towards rising high school juniors throughout The Center’s 45-county service area. Students spend a week on one of two college campuses including Lindsey Wilson College and Morehead State University. They are introduced to topics such as leadership, community service, civic engagement, entrepreneurship, technology and more. There were 62 students selected for this year’s program.

Rogers Explorers is a youth leadership camp targeted towards rising high school freshmen. Students spend three days on one of seven college campuses through Kentucky including Asbury University, Eastern Kentucky University, Lindsey Wilson College, Morehead State University, Union College, University of the Cumberlands, and University of Pikeville. Students focus on topics of leadership, community service, and STEM career pathways such as chemistry, biology, health sciences, engineering, space science, agriculture sciences, and more. There were 210 students selected for this year’s program.