Each year, a new group of highly motivated and gifted scholars is invited to join the EMU . From this group, two prospective students are selected to receive the annual full-tuition .

Nicole Litwiller of Sarasota, Florida, and Maria Yoder of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, will begin their education in the fall of 2015 as contributors to EMU’s legacy of academic excellence.

During Honors Weekend in February, Litwiller and Yoder came to campus with 42 other candidates for the final interview process. The group averaged 1,269 on the SAT critical reading and math sections, 29 on the ACT and a high-school grade point average (GPA) of 4.11.

Full Tuition Yoder Scholarships

The Yoder Scholarships, established in 1993, are named for Paul and Carol Yoder of Harrisonburg, Virginia, both 1963 graduates of EMU. The rigorous selection process for the two scholarships includes a comprehensive academic and service resume, letters of recommendation, creative essays and interviews with Honors Program professors. Candidates who do not win the full-tuition scholarships receive academic scholarships covering approximately half of tuition, as well as membership in the Honors Program.

“We are looking for creative students with wide-ranging interests and strong leadership abilities,” said , a mathematics professor and faculty member in the Honors Program.

Benefits Include 1:1 Mentoring and Critical Thinking Boosts

Over the past three years, the graduation rate for EMU honors students was 100 percent, with a third completing double or triple majors. These students, representing diverse cultural, racial and religious backgrounds, participate in special academic and co-curricular opportunities to learn from and be mentored by faculty.

A majority of honors graduates responding to a 2009 alumni survey “strongly agreed” that the program increased their overall learning and deepened critical thinking skills. Forty-two percent of the survey respondents indicated an educational track beyond their undergraduate degree.

Maria Yoder: The Animal Lover

Maria Yoder loves cats and dogs, and as she took biology classes in the past year, she thought about becoming a veterinarian someday. Lately she’s been volunteering at an animal hospital. At EMU, she plans to enroll in the pre-professional health sciences program.

At Hempfield High School, Yoder is involved in sports, music, tutoring and academic clubs. She was captain of her school’s volleyball team, which won consecutive state championships in 2013 and 2014. She is also captain of the track and field team. A cellist in the school orchestra, she was selected this spring for the state orchestra.

At EMU, Yoder will run , her favorite sport, and join the team. She will play cello in the orchestra.

“I like to keep a busy schedule,” she says, “but I have to be organized and make sure to leave some time for relaxing so I don’t feel overwhelmed.”

Her parents, Randy and Marianne Kurtz Yoder, graduated from EMU in 1982 and 1983, respectively. Her mother earned a in 2013. Although EMU was high on Yoder’s list, she also considered Haverford College near Philadelphia and the University of Mary Washington in Virginia.

Nicole Litwiller: Looking Forward to Cross-Cultural

Nicole Litwiller says that “EMU has been on my radar since I was young.” Her parents are both graduates – Larry ’80 and Nelda Rempel Litwiller ‘85. “I am excited to expand my faith and be challenged by professors,” she says. “Also, I love how EMU puts a huge focus on becoming more knowledgeable about other cultures worldwide.”

During the middle of her sophomore year, Litwiller went through an emotional experience when her family moved from Kansas to Florida the day after Christmas. She did not know anyone at Sarasota Christian School, but she looks back on that transition as full of “many new and fun things.”

Today she is president of her senior class, and she is trying to make the year an unforgettable one for her classmates. During her sophomore and junior years, she was on her school’s team that advanced to world competition both times.

A member of her high school soccer team and one of its three captains, Litwiller will probably play for EMU this fall.

Her major, at this point, is undecided. “I hope that through my classes, the cross-cultural trip and other experiences at EMU that my path will become clearer,” she says. “I am looking forward to many opportunities to experience the world.”

Shank replaces outgoing director Doug Nyce `86, who after 11 years with EMU, will become resident services manager for Park Village at Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community.

“We are very pleased that Jeff Shank is joining our advancement team,” said Kirk Shisler, vice president of advancement. “He brings significant experience and vision for engaging our students, alumni and parents in ways that will energize them as advocates and supporters of EMU’s mission and vision.”

Shank, who has served on the EMU Board of Trustees, looks forward to contributing to the EMU community in a different way.

“As an alumnus of the school, I have always valued my education, the professors, friendships, and experiences I had at the university,” he said. “It will be a joyful experience to relate to other alumni and parents who appreciate EMU as well, and I hope to enhance the alumni and parent experience in ways that keep everyone connected.”

Shank’s extensive experience contributes to his readiness to fill what is essentially a new position in EMU’s advancement division focused on enhancing the advocacy and annual giving of alumni and parents.

Since 2009, Shank has been superintendent of Sarasota Christian School, a pre-K-12 academy, where he oversees a $3.6 million budget, approximately 60 employees, and 420 students. Under his leadership, the school earned several awards, including “Family Living” magazine’s Best Private School award; Florida High School Athletic Association’s Floyd E. Lay award for the top 2A program in Florida; and the Sister Cities One World Award for development of global partnerships.

Prior to that, Shank served in a variety of positions at LMS in an association that spanned 14 years and several promotions. He began his career at LMS as a special education teacher from 1995 to 1999, then worked the next four years with Baltimore County schools, and returned to LMS in 2002 to take an administrative position as the K-12 special education coordinator.

Over the next seven years at LMS, Shank was also a development associate and alumni relations director and internal coordinator for accreditation, before serving one year as assistant principal of the Locust Grove Campus and finally becoming executive director of development/alumni relations.

During that time, he also earned an MA in curriculum and instruction with an emphasis in leadership from Penn State University. In 2014, he was elected to the executive committee of the Mennonite Schools Council.

Shank and his wife Julie Litwiller Shank ’95 have three children: Ryan, 12, Tyler, 9, and Emilee, 5.

While ��ݮ���� held its 87th annual commencement exercises May 1 on the front lawn of campus, awarding diplomas to 380 undergraduate and graduate students, a second ceremony took place May 26, 2005 at Sarasota (Fla.) Christian School to recognize a cohort group of students from that area who earned the M.A. in education degree through an extension program from EMU.

1st row: Jean R. Hawk, Judy H. Mullet, EMU education department faculty;

2nd row: Gene Miller, superintendent, Sarasota Christian; Diane Denisar, Dawn Graber, Brett Courter, Sharon Metcalf, Terri Hale, Shane Kiser; Beryl H. Brubaker, EMU provost and speaker at the graduation ceremony.

3rd row: Jean Martin, elementary and middle school principal, Sarasota Christian; J. David Yoder, EMU adjunct faculty member; Lisa Nielsen, Bethany Smucker, Curtis Lynch, Rebecca Conyer, Kristi Geib; Donovan D. Steiner, chair, EMU

education department; and Bob Hovde, high school principal, Sarasota Christian.