Sarah Shatel, a freshman at the University of Missouri, was named the 24th winner of the Volney Meece Scholarship on Monday.

 

The scholarship is awarded annually by the Football Writers Association of America and named for the late Volney Meece. Meece served 22 years as the FWAA’s executive director and was the organization’s president in 1971.

 

The scholarship is a $1,000 annual grant for four years. It is awarded to a deserving son or daughter of an FWAA member.

 

The 19-year-old Shatel is the daughter of long-time FWAA member Tom Shatel, Omaha World-Herald sports columnist and 2000 FWAA President. 

 

Sarah compiled an impressive list of academic and extracurricular achievements as a student at Elkhorn (NE) South High School. She has continued along that path at Mizzou.

 

At Elkhorn South, Sarah maintained a weighted 4.105 GPA while taking several advanced placement and honors courses. A member of the National Honor Society, she was cited for outstanding academic excellence by the President’s Education Awards Program.

 

She helped organize a church mission to Costa Rica, served as a peer tutor through the National Honor Society, was involved in SADD (Student Against Destructive Decisions), was web editor and writer for the student newspaper, and volunteered for extracurricular activities while working several part-time jobs. 

 

Sarah is majoring in mathematics at Mizzou with a minor in Spanish.

 

Past winners of the Volney Meece Scholarship  

•   1997 Brett Goering Topeka, Kan.  
•   1998 Kelly Brooks Denver, Colo.  
•   1999 James Butz Schaumberg, Ill.  
•   2000 Sara Barnhart Atlanta, Ga.  
•   2001 Patrick Davis Coventry, Conn.  
•   2002 Jacqueline O’Toole Gaithersburg, Md.  
•   2003 Garrett Holtz Denver, Colo.  
•   2004 Katie Hersom Oklahoma City, Okla.  
•   2005 Katie Wieberg Lawson, Mo.  
•   2006 Kaylynn Monroe Winter Park, Fla.  
•   2007 Nate Kerkhoff Overland Park, Kan.  
•   2008 Jack Caywood Lawrence, Kan.  
•   2009 Haley Dodd Overland Park, Kan.  
•   2010 Donald Hunt Philadelphia, Pa.  
•   2011 Alaina Martens Papillion, Neb.  
•   2012 Emily Alford Tupelo, Miss.  
•   2013 Sarah Helsley Edmond, Okla.  
•   2014 Robert Abramson Palos Verde, Calif.  
•   2015 Danielle Hoover Tulsa, Okla.  
•   2016 Dolen Helwagen Pataskala, Ohio  
•   2017 Elizabeth Schroeder Norman, Okla.  
•   2018 Mallory Rosetta Baton Rouge, La.  
•   2019 Alexandra Haley Hamilton, N.J.