The Honors College at WKU and WBKO-TV hosted a reception on Dec. 6 to honor the 2016-2017 Scholar of the Week recipients.

The Scholar of the Week program recognizes young scholars in Southcentral Kentucky and the WBKO viewing area for their academic and extracurricular activities. The Honors College at WKU has been partnering with WBKO since 2010 on the Scholar of the Week Program.

Out of more than 250 applicants, 72 students were chosen as Scholars of the Week for the 2016-2017 academic school year and have their name, high school and accomplishments air on segments on WBKO’s “10 PM News” on Tuesdays and “AM Kentucky” on Wednesdays. Each student is invited to a reception to celebrate their achievements, recognize them individually, and reward two Scholar of the Week students with a $1,000 scholarship for WKU.

Honored from Logan County High School were Caleb Cline, Kaitlyn Foster and  Meredith Johnson,

This year’s two scholarship winners are Heather McKinney, a senior at Warren East High School, and Valentina Pinilla, a senior at South Warren High School.

McKinney has a 3.976 GPA and is a member of the Academic Team and Beta Club. She plans to pursue a career in the medical or veterinary fields of study and hopes to be able to give back to the community throughout her academic and professional years.

Pinilla intends to major in either International Business, Business Administration or Psychology with a minor in Spanish. She is the treasurer of student council and the Vice President of Marketing for the Spirit Club. She also participates in National Honor Society, Beta Club and Future Business Leaders of America while maintaining a 3.9 GPA.

Dr. Craig T. Cobane, executive eirector of the Honors College at WKU, believes the Scholar of the Week program provides a wonderful showcase of the quality of our local school systems and it reaffirms the mission of WKU and the Honors College to propel our scholars to even greater academic and professional heights.