Missouri Students Association President Nick Droege was one of five college undergraduates nationwide to receive a $10,000 scholarship from Liberty Mutual Insurance. Droege is being awarded the scholarship because of his work founding Tiger Pantry, an MSA auxiliary.
Helmed by the Liberty Mutual Responsible Scholars Scholarship program, the scholarship is awarded to five students who, according to the program’s (website)[http://www.libertymutualgroup.com/omapps/ContentServer?pagename=LMGroup/Views/LMG&ft=5&fid=1138369459915&ln=en], initiate a service or volunteer program that directly impacts or actively engages their campus community.
In Droege’s case, this service was Tiger Pantry.
After applying for the scholarship, Droege spoke to Lane Garnett, the university relations program manager for Liberty Mutual Insurance, who asked for a follow-up interview. Shortly into the interview, Garnett informed Droege he would be receiving the scholarship.
“I was absolutely shocked,” Droege said.
The $10,000 amount is especially helpful for Droege, a student paying his own way through college. Having the money will ease the financial burden of his senior year and pay off debts that have accumulated since he began his education at MU, he said.
Droege was originally unaware of the program until he was informed by Devin Kelsey, an MSA senator who serves on the Budget and Operations committees. It was only a week before the deadline when Droege applied, he said.
“I’m very thankful for (Devin) because I definitely would not have applied if it wasn’t for him,” Droege said.
A sense of responsibility is a large part of what goes into determining the recipients of the scholarship. Droege said, as a campus, we have the responsibility to provide resources to students who are struggling.
Tiger Pantry has much to do with the shift in perception of what it means to provide for a student, Droege said. Nationwide, universities are changing their ideas of what it means to give students a way to be successful and have the complete collegiate experience, Droege said.
What Droege calls the “complete collegiate experience” has much to do with what is experienced outside the classroom.
“If I didn’t have a job or if I wasn’t lucky enough to have some of these jobs that I do, then there’s no way I would be able to get involved and there’s no way I would have started Tiger Pantry or had some of the experiences I had,” Droege said.
Responsibility is also among MU’s four core values. Among all the different aspects that the word encompasses, adequately providing for each student’s needs is important, Droege said.
Among the needs are ones based off of financial situation, religious affiliation, sexual orientation and more, Droege said.
The efforts that went into creating Tiger Pantry and as a result the scholarship aren’t limited to Droege. Any person that is on the Tiger Pantry team is worthy of this scholarship, he said.
“It was a group of really amazing individuals that made it happen,” Droege said. “There’s not one person more deserving than the other.”
The more responsibility enters everyday conversation and people like Nick and his team continue to do what they do, the more it can affect our daily lives, Garnett said.
“There are thousands of students doing great things on campus and in their communities every day,” Garnett said in a news release. “This scholarship is a way for us to reward students like Nick for the difference they are making.”
