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Good News for Ponca H. S. Seniors

PHS senior, Rachel Kneifl, daughter of Ron and Desiree Kneifl, has been notified that she is the recipient of the KLOP (Kearney Law Opportunities Program) Scholarship for the 2017-2018 school year.

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A new program at the University of Nebraska at Kearney aims to train more students to become lawyers who practice in rural communities and reduce the state’s shortage of lawyers in those communities.  The Kearney Law Opportunities Program (KLOP) is a collaborative partnership between UNK and the University of Nebraska College of Law. The program recruits students from rural areas and trains them to become lawyers who will return and practice in their communities.  KLOP aims to ensure rural Nebraska areas have access to legal representation while encouraging students from those areas to pursue legal studies in order to return to their communities to meet the demand for attorneys.  Participants in the program receive their bachelor’s degrees at UNK and are then guaranteed admittance into the Nebraska College of Law. If selected to participate, students in the UNK KLOP program will receive a full tuition scholarship to UNK (for up to 125 credit hours).  Students at UNK can major in any program and have an emphasis in pre-law. They’re encouraged to take courses that emphasize law in criminal justice, political science, business and other departments. There are currently about 50 students with a pre-law emphasis at UNK.

Each semester, KLOP students and the alternates will visit the University of Nebraska College of Law to participate in activities such as observing a classroom, visiting with law students, and attending guest lectures.  Students participating in the program will be assigned a mentor from UNK or College of Law alumni.  Wayne State College and Chadron State College have also partnered with the UNL College of Law to offer the Rural Law Opportunities Program.

PHS senior, Shelby Rickett, daughter of Dennis and Tina Rickett, has been notified that she is an alternate candidate of the RHOP (Rural Health Opportunities Program) Scholarship for the 2017-2018 school year. 

The Rural Health Opportunities Program is a collaborative partnership between Nebraska state colleges and the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. The program recruits students from rural areas and trains them to become health care providers who will return and practice in their communities. This program represents a commitment and dedication to the education of Nebraskans and quality healthcare for citizens of the state and has worked to bring health practitioners to rural areas the past 25 years. Participants in the program receive their bachelor’s degrees at WSC and are then guaranteed admittance into the University of Nebraska Medical Center (Omaha). Students can major in any program and have an emphasis in pre-professional health majors. Participants in the program spend time at WSC and UNMC, with the amount of time at each institution determined by the program. If selected to participate, students in the WSC RHOP program will receive the following, contingent upon maintaining the conditions of the program: tuition waiver at Wayne State College and guaranteed admission to the relevant UNMC program. As an RHOP pre-dental alternate, Shelby is guaranteed $2,000 in scholarships for next fall.

Congratulations Rachel & Shelby!