The Mary Stuart Rogers Scholarship Program
By: Carol Bonino
It’s no surprise that Tevin Gianella, a junior majoring in physical education, was chosen to receive a Mary Stuart Rogers Scholarship this year. These scholarships are given to students committed to serving others. Service is in Tevin’s DNA.
“I serve by hosting one to two prospective GU students each week, showing them the campus, residence hall life, and the Gonzaga atmosphere,” Tevin explains. “I also have served during GEL (Gonzaga Experience Live) Weekend the past two years, hosting five high school students who came for an extended campus experience.” But, wait, there’s more: “I have served in three Spokane schools – Trinity and Logan elementary schools and Rogers High School, teaching Physical Education and further developing students’ skills.” He’s not done yet: “Back home I served at the Brother Andre Homeless Shelter in downtown Portland, providing home-cooked meals, and just being in company with impoverished individuals.”
Why does he volunteer? “I serve to better my community, the individuals in my community, and to serve a greater good. Through serving others, I hope to inspire and improve the lives of others.” To learn more about where Tevin’s commitment to serve comes from, we asked his mom, Page, who said: “Our family has always helped wherever we could. I volunteer at the youth correction facility every Sunday, and Tevin’s Grandma tutors at school. God gave Tevin the gift to be able to talk with anyone, anywhere,” she adds, noting in particular Tevin’s ability to “comfort others and his passion to serve.”
Tevin is the second of four sons to Phillip and Page Gianella of Hubbard, Oregon. Tevin’s dad is a farmer, his mother a third grade teacher. The first three sons are Zags. Tevin’s older brother, Tygh, earned his degree last May, and Trey is entering the nursing program this fall. Brother, Trenton, the youngest of the foursome, will be a junior at Blanchet Catholic High School in Salem this fall.
Tevin is among 22 Gonzaga students receiving Mary Stuart Rogers Scholarships this year. Katherine “Kaeli” Joyce, a senior majoring in Classical Civilization and Religious Studies, also is a Mary Stuart Rogers Scholar. Her motivation to serve comes from God and family. “When I keep my eyes up and offer myself to others, life is refreshed,” she says. “I serve because my parents have taught me through their lives that serving others is what life is all about, and that ‘the good life’ is cultivated when you love.”
Kaeli’s parents, Rick and Sue Joyce, are missionaries in England, serving in Youth With a Mission (YWAM). All four of their children (ages 20-29) are passionate about serving others. Oldest daughter Anna hopes to head to Africa after finishing nutrition studies at Bastyr University, where she can put her education to work. Alex, their son, is just returning from missions training in the Pacific Islands and Cambodia. Abbey, the youngest, has been training with her parents in YYAM in England. Kaeli fits right in with her siblings. Her dad recalls her trip to the Ukraine when she was 15. Kaeli went to help “some doctor friends of ours who were doing medical missions at that time. They went to help in some orphanages and with street kids in the cities,” he says. Two years later Kaeli traveled to the Philippines with her family to serve again.
The MSR Scholarship program started at GU in 2000. To date, the Mary Stuart Rogers Foundation has given nearly $1.5 million to support the program, which has awarded 298 scholarships.
John Rogers, President of the Foundation, says that his mother, who started the Foundation, “believed that education was the most important thing a person could have to make a difference,” adding that she was especially passionate about helping students who otherwise could not easily afford college. Several universities have Mary Stuart Rogers Scholarship programs, but Gonzaga is the only one in Washington state. Mary Stuart Rogers’ emphasis on living a life for others is reflected in the criteria for awarding the MSR Scholarships at Gonzaga. Says Col. Rogers: “Of all the institutions we support, Gonzaga ‘walks the talk.’ Service is very important and we like the way Gonzaga does it. The students get it.”
MSR Scholarships are given to students who, in addition to being committed to community service, are juniors or seniors in any discipline, or to fifth-year students studying in the School of Education to become teachers. Recipients must have a GPA of at least 3.0 and demonstrated financial need. Awards are $5,000 per academic year and are renewable provided the student continues to meet the criteria.
Application for a Mary Stuart Rogers Scholarship begins at the start of spring semester and closes at spring break. Students who will be eligible the following year are strongly encouraged to apply. We also encourage faculty, staff, and Gonzaga parents to discuss applications with students.
The $5,000 awards have significant impact, and not just for the financial assistant they provide.
Not only does the scholarship provide as much support for Tevin as he’d earn working an entire summer on the farm, he adds that “I just feel honored to be called a Mary Stuart Rogers Scholar.” And credit Page, his mom, too: “I encouraged Tevin to apply when he mentioned it in the spring. He was so excited when he called with the news that he was selected. The scholarship will definitely have a financial impact, but more importantly it sends a message that service is important. Good people value helping others. It’s a message he will pass on to his students and athletes when he is a teacher and coach.”
Kaeli’s Mary Stuart Rogers Scholarship is especially meaningful to the Joyce family, says her dad: “When God called me to take my family into a life of missions, I left a good career as a registered nurse in the States, and now live on donations and gifts from our friends and family who believe in what we are doing. We told our kids early on that, unfortunately, we wouldn’t be able to afford to send them to college or university because of the life choices we were making. Kaeli has depended so much on this scholarship and others’ generosity to be able to pursue the course of study that she feels that God has led her to. That generosity has of course been a huge blessing to us as well.”
To learn more about the Mary Stuart Rogers Scholarship Program, contact Robin Guevara, manager of Student Employment, at (509) 313-6587 or Guevara@gonzaga.edu. Also, check the website, www.gonzaga.edu/studentemployment, beginning spring semester, to link to the Mary Stuart Rogers Scholarship page.