High School students across Southern Illinois, including from Carbondale Community High School (above) and Marion High School (below), celebrated with SIU Carbondale Chancellor Austin Lane, other SIU personnel and their families on Feb. 2 when they received Chancellor’s Scholarships. (Top photo by Russell Bailey, bottom photo by Jaclyn Durcholz)
February 03, 2026
SIU Carbondale awards full-ride Chancellor’s Scholarships to high achieving students
CARBONDALE, Ill. – Thirty high achieving high school students were surprised when they received Southern Illinois University Carbondale 2026 Chancellor’s Scholarships, which cover tuition, mandatory fees, on-campus housing and food for four years.
Chancellor Austin A. Lane and other university officials visited 24 high schools in the Southern Illinois and Metro East regions during the past week to present the scholarships and congratulate the students.
“There is nothing more meaningful than visiting our regional high schools and surprising students with a Chancellor’s Scholarship,” Lane said. “These students represent the talent, drive, and potential of Southern Illinois. At Southern, we are committed to investing in our region and supporting students who are ready to lead, serve, and make a difference, right here and beyond.”
A total of 43 scholarships will be announced in the coming weeks.
Lane presented scholarships to students in Carbondale, Carterville, Du Quoin, Herrin, Marion, Murphysboro, Nashville and Pinckneyville. Other scholarship recipients in Southern Illinois received visits from university officials.
There were 565 high school students who competed in the selection process. Winning students demonstrate high academic achievement, have a strong record of leadership in their communities and participate in numerous extracurricular activities.
The award is renewable for three years, contingent upon the students maintaining a 3.0 or higher GPA.
Students from Southern Illinois and the Metro East who received Chancellor’s Scholarships include:
- Anna: Foster Needling, Anna-Jonesboro Community High School.
- Belleville: Elena Geppert, Belleville Township High School.
- Belleville: Maximus Manges, O’Fallon Township High School.
- Benton: Hunter Irvin, Benton Consolidated High School.
- Carbondale: Cate Duckworth, Carbondale Community High School.
- Carbondale: Ibrahim Makhdoom, Carbondale Community High School.
- Carbondale: Reese Povolish, Carbondale Community High School.
- Carterville: Anhhuy Hayden Nguyen, Carterville High School.
- Carterville: Marlee Rosenbery, Carterville High School.
- Du Quoin: Reagan Rodely, Du Quoin High School.
- East St. Louis: Christian Johnson, Cahokia High School.
- Fairview Heights: Kamden Hearn, Belleville East High School.
- Goreville: Cash Davis, Goreville High School.
- Harrisburg: Rosalily Robinson, Harrisburg High School.
- Herrin: Nolan Gentile, Herrin High School.
- Makanda: Nadya Jayawardene, Carbondale Community High School.
- Marion: Kharloz Hernandez, Marion High School.
- Marion: Samuel Sellars, Marion High School.
- Metropolis: Zach Maurer, Massac County High School.
- Mulkeytown: Landon Sveda, Christopher High School.
- Murphysboro: William Falkenburry, Murphysboro High School.
- Murphysboro: Reece Mileur, Murphysboro High School.
- Nashville: Isabelle Schmale, Nashville Community High School.
- Pinckneyville: Jonathan Kuhnert, Pinckneyville Community High School.
- Thompsonville: Braden Stanley, Johnston City High School.
- Rockwood: Rylie Myers, Chester High School.
- Sesser: Rowen McCubbins, Sesser-Valier High School.
- Simpson: Gracyn Horn, Vienna High School.
- West Frankfort: Kailyn Kahl, Thompsonville High School.
MISSOURI
- Louis: Cassie Bellew, Collegiate School of Medicine and Bioscience.
SIU Carbondale offers various scholarships to high school seniors and transfer students. For more information on the university’s scholarships and financial aid, contact Amber Rivers, associate director of scholarships in the Financial Aid Office, at scholarships@siu.edu or 618-453-4628.