April 22, 2016
Contact: Jill Drury, Communication Specialist
jedrury@dps.k12.oh.us
For Immediate Release

Shadayah Lawrence will attend the University of Dayton on a full scholarship

     Springtime is scholarship season at Dayton Public Schools. Graduating seniors are busy making plans for college and careers. Many rely on scholarship money to help realize their dreams of attending college. For Shadayah Lawrence, it means a full ride to the University of Dayton.
Shadayah is the 2016 recipient of the W.S. McIntosh Memorial Leadership Award. The combination scholarship and internship is sponsored by the city of Dayton and the University of Dayton. It will cover her tuition, plus room and board, for four academic years. She will also have the opportunity to complete an internship with the city that offers hands-on training and service opportunities. Shadayah hopes to put the skills she learned in the biotech lab at Ponitz Career Technology Center to the test for the city. She minces few words about what it took to reach her goals.
“Dayton schools have a lot of teachers who really care about their students. It was my job to take every opportunity offered to me and create my own pathway,” Shadayah said. “College was always in my plan. I pushed to make it happen.”
Forget the childhood mud pie-making, Shadayah’s favorite memories of growing up consist of concocting potions with products like baby powder and lotions to see what would happen. It certainly made a mess, but it ultimately led her to the biotech lab at Ponitz, where her science project, investigating regulations for bottled water versus tap water, was recently judged to be among the best in the state.
During her sophomore year at DPS, Shadayah took advantage of the College Credit Plus Program, which allowed her to earn college credits while attending high school. She says the program allows her to carry a slightly lighter load at UD in the fall, so that she can focus on courses that will lead to her major course of study.  She has yet to choose an official major, but it will most likely be in the science field.
According to the College Board, the average cost to attend college full-time in 2015-2016, including room and board, is anywhere from $11,000 for a two-year school all the way up to $44,000 for a private, nonprofit institution, and the cost keeps rising. Clearly, the McIntosh scholarship takes a heavy load off the finances in Shadayah’s family.
“We call it the ‘buy one, get one’ program at my house. My dad is still paying off loans from his college years at UD. Now, at least, I get to attend without the worry of where the money will come from,” Shadayah said. “I have four younger brothers and sisters, so I try to be a leader in my family. I want them to work as hard as I do, so that they can go to college.”
The W.S. McIntosh Memorial Leadership Award is named for a Dayton civil rights leader in the 1960s. William Sumpter McIntosh was inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to lead one of the first major civil rights protests in Dayton. He organized a non-violent protest that fought for the rights of African-Americans working at companies like the old Rike’s department store and Liberal supermarket. McIntosh was shot and killed March 4, 1974 while trying to thwart a robbery outside a store his family owned.  Shadayah is a shining example of the same determination that W.S. McIntosh used to make the Dayton community a better place to live.
“I hope to set a good example, work hard, and try to be the best I can be,” she said.
Shadayah’s story is one of many success stories at Dayton Public Schools. These are the stories worth telling, the stories that introduce us to our community’s next leaders.
Stivers School for the Arts valedictorian and scholarship winner, Ebi Reyes, learned many of the same lessons that Shadayah Lawrence takes to heart. Her story begins in the Central American country of Costa Rica. Her struggle and success is more than deserving of the “Beating the Odds” scholarship she received from the Children’s Defense Fund. Ebi’s story is coming in the days ahead. In the meantime, to set up an interview with Shadayah Lawrence, or any student we’ll be highlighting, contact Jill Drury, communication specialist, at 937-542-3023 or email jedrury@dps.k12.oh.us.

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