ATHENS, Ohio -- This fall, Charles Butler of Columbus, Ohio, is among 10 new Templeton Scholars at Ohio University.

Recipients of the Templeton scholarship must have been ranked in the top 20 percent of their high school graduation class and scored a minimum of 28 on the ACT or 1,240 on the SAT. Other requirements included a written essay, interviews with Ohio University faculty and staff members and current Templeton Scholars and endorsements from their high school teachers and administrators. The scholarships are renewable provided the students complete 16 credit hours and maintain a 3.3 GPA.

Butler will major in advertising at Ohio University. He placed 10th in science and ninth in Spanish in the Central Ohio District Tests of Scholastic Achievement. He also has been a volunteer at the Salesian Boys and Girls Club in Columbus and has tutored disabled grade school children. He is the son of Rob Newell and Dora Wilson.

The scholarship is named after John Newton Templeton, who was born a slave in South Carolina around 1805. He was emancipated in 1813 and went on to educate other African-Americans while serving as a principal and teacher at the African School in Pittsburgh, the city's first school for African-Americans. He died in 1851.

"We are well pleased with these exceptional students and their choice to attend Ohio University," said Assistant to the President Erek Perry, who directs the scholarship program. "These Templeton Scholars have many outstanding qualities, possess a deep commitment to excellence and will continue to honor the legacy of John Newton Templeton."