WS Chronicle

The Morehead-Cain Foundation – home of the oldest, most prestigious merit scholarship program in the United States – will welcome 48 new scholars to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill this fall.

The new crop of Morehead-Cain scholars include the following Forsyth County students:

• McKenzie Sean Folan attends Woodberry Forest School in Woodberry Forest, Va. He is a jazz trumpet player and captain of the varsity baseball team. He also founded the Old Town Elementary School BackPack Program, an organization that provides children in need with backpacks filled with food to take home with them on the weekends. McKenzie is the son of McDara and Ragan Folan of Winston-Salem.

• Lauren Grace Kent attends Mount Tabor High School in Winston-Salem. A budding journalist, Lauren is the co-editor-in-chief of her student newspaper. She is also a champion pole vaulter and has been active in Girl Scouts for more than 10 years, earning the Girl Scout Gold Award. She is the daughter of Cameron and Susan Kent of Winston-Salem.

• Erik Reinhard Schoning attends West Forsyth High School in Clemmons, where he is a member of the varsity swim, cross-country and track teams. Erik is the president of his school’s National Honor Society, and started a creative writing column in the student newspaper. Erik is the son of Martin and Nury Schoning of Clemmons.
Since its founding in 1945, the Morehead-Cain has been a model for countless merit scholarships throughout the United States. In addition to covering all expenses for four years of undergraduate study at UNC, the Morehead-Cain features a distinctive program of summer enrichment experiences. Over four summers, scholars have the opportunity to complete an outdoor leadership course, carry out public service in the United States or abroad, conduct research at sites across the world and gain experience in private enterprise.

The class of 2017 includes 23 scholars from North Carolina high schools; 17 American scholars outside of North Carolina; one scholar from Kenya; one scholar from Italy; three British scholars; and three Canadian scholars.