McAllen’s Anna Kennedy named first Mitte Laureate

Date of Release: 08/25/2006

SAN MARCOS – Sophomore Anna Kennedy has been named the inaugural Mitte Laureate at Texas State University-San Marcos by the Roy F. and Joann Cole Mitte Foundation.

Anna KennedyKennedy, a Rio Grande Valley native, graduated Summa Cum Laude from McAllen High School in 2005. During her high school years she participated in Constitution Team, Key Club, the United States Amateur Jump Rope Federation, and other community service projects. Anna is currently a member of College Republicans at Texas State University, and is pursuing a major in Political Science.

“I congratulate Anna Kennedy on being named the first recipient of a Mitte Laureate Scholarship at Texas State. It is our most prestigious scholarship and is one of the most prestigious academic awards in the nation. We are very proud of Anna and know that she will represent Texas State well now and in the future,” said Texas State President Denise M. Trauth.

The Mitte Laureate Scholars Program will award four undergraduate academic scholarships annually worth as much as $25,000 a year or $100,000 over the course of an undergraduate student’s four-year degree program. In continued support of the Mitte Laureate Scholars Program, as well as other affiliated programs at Texas State, Scott Mitte announced this week a gift of an additional $150,000 to the Mitte Honors Endowment from the Roy F. and Joann Cole Mitte Foundation.

Scholarship funds will pay for tuition and fees, room and board, books, study abroad, internships and other education related travel. Students selected for the program are also eligible for other resources, including a personal faculty mentor, first choice of residence halls, office space in the Mitte Honors Program office suite, advanced class registration and membership in the Texas State Student Foundation.

To be considered for the scholarship, a student must, at a minimum, have earned an SAT/ACT score of 1300/30, maintained an unweighted high school grade point average of 3.5 or better, and meet one of the following criteria:

* Achieve commended, semi-finalist or finalist status in the National Merit competition; or,
* Rank in the top five percent of their high school graduating class.

Additional factors that will be considered include communication skills, community involvement and citizenship, employment or internship history, essay response, extracurricular activities and a personal resume.

Mitte Laureates will also be required to demonstrate continued community service, in keeping with the Mitte Foundation’s goal of developing community leaders.

Roy F. and Joann Cole Mitte of Austin are among Texas State’s most generous benefactors and alumni. In 1997, during the university’s first capital campaign, the Roy F. and Joann Cole Mitte Foundation made the largest total contribution to that campaign, establishing a scholarship fund to annually support 125 undergraduate and graduate students with awards of $5,000 per year, and providing an additional fund to support five endowed chairs at the university. To date, over 450 Texas State students have received a Mitte Scholarship.

Since 1997, the Mitte Foundation has also provided substantial support in the amount of $420,000 for the Grosvenor Scholars Program Endowment and $500,000 to endow the Mitte Honors Program.

The Mitte Foundation has supported a wide range of community organizations and institutions of higher education. The Foundation has also supported a variety of cultural opportunities in Central and South Texas . Further information about the Mitte Foundation can be found on their website at www.mittefoundation.org.