Topeka, KS – The Kansas Office of the State Bank Commissioner (OSBC) has awarded five scholarships totaling $25,000 to five recent Kansas high school graduates. The students wrote essays demonstrating their knowledge of money management and the importance it has on their future in this year’s Kansas Financial Scholars Essay Contest.
This year’s winners were each awarded a $5,000 scholarship from the Kansas Office of the State Bank Commissioner (OSBC) to continue their education at a Kansas school of higher learning.
Congratulations to the winners: Morgan Allen of Centralia High School who will be attending Fort Hays State University to pursue a degree in Nursing, Cindy Do of Campus High School who will be pursuing an Accounting Degree from Wichita State University, Sydney Sage from Jefferson West High School who will be attending Washburn University to pursue a degree in Marketing and Management, Quade Smith of St. John High School who will be pursuing a Business-Finance degree from Fort Hays State University, and Alyssa Wolff who will be attending The University of Kansas to pursue a degree in Nursing.
When asked about this year’s scholarship contest, Bank Commissioner David Herndon said “This year’s OSBC scholarship contestants truly demonstrate the quality of your future leaders. Each candidate tested the judging panel with their outstanding submissions. And although only five could be selected, our best wishes are extended to each of the 69 applicants.”
Consumer Affairs Manager Kristy Hanshaw added “Congratulations to the 2025 OSBC scholarship recipients for their exceptional essays on financial literacy! This year’s contest saw a record number of entries and remarkable submissions. Best wishes to all participants for ongoing success.”
To be eligible for this scholarship, students must have completed a financial literacy program that aligns with the Kansas financial literacy K-12 standards, and they must be attending a Kansas trade school, technical school, college, or university in the Fall of 2025. To enter, the students were asked to submit a two-part essay. The first part discussed how they learned about money management, and its effect on their approach to managing financial decisions for their continued education. For the second part, they described how they used the knowledge gained through their financial literacy program and personal experience. The essay also required research and the use of an educational cost calculator.
More information about the winners available at https://www.osbckansas.gov/2025-kansas-financial-scholars-essay-contest/.
Educating Kansas consumers is an important part of the mission of the OSBC. There are many different financial literacy programs and curriculum used in high schools and this contest challenges students to use that knowledge to research and analyze decisions they will make for their futures. The scholarships are funded by fines imposed and collected from non-depository regulated institutions, or settlements reached with companies within the jurisdiction of the OSBC. No taxpayer monies or bank assessment funds are used.
The OSBC regulates all state-chartered banks, trust companies, mortgage companies, supervised lenders, credit service organizations, and money transmitters that do business in the State of Kansas. The mission of the OSBC is to ensure the integrity of regulated providers of financial services through responsible and proactive oversight, while protecting and educating consumers.
