2/6/98
ATHENS, Ohio -- Two new scholarships for Oak Hill High School graduates were announced Thursday, Feb. 12, by Oak Hill High School and Ohio University graduate Leona Hughes. Hughes has contributed $400,000 to endow two Manasseh Cutler Scholars Awards and $200,000 for two annual tuition scholarships.
"My roots are deep in Oak Hill where I was born, the third generation of immigrants from Wales. I grew up there as did my husband, also with a Welsh heritage," Hughes said. "With privilege comes responsibility; we are debtors because we are heirs; we have the responsibility to pay back what has been given to us. Education and the wise use of knowledge is the key to our future -- we would like to be a part of the future of Oak Hill."
Hughes graduated from high school in 1926 and Ohio University in 1930. The late Lewis Hughes, husband of Leona, grew up near Thurman in Gallia County in Southeastern Ohio.
Starting fall quarter 1999, The Leona and Lewis Hughes Cutler Scholars Award will be awarded every other year to Oak Hill High School graduates planning to attend Ohio University.
The Cutler Scholars Program, an undergraduate merit scholarship program modeled on the Rhodes Scholars of Oxford University for graduate students, emphasizes development of recipients' leadership potential. The four-year, undergraduate scholarship provides full tuition and room and board for four years, plus a stipend to cover structured summer internships and travel.
"To be considered as a Cutler Scholar, the young person must be a serious student who exhibits a moral strength of character and translates personal values into scholastic pursuits and community involvement," said Charles J. Ping, Ohio University president emeritus and executive director of the Cutler Scholars Program.
The Hughes-Cutler Scholars Award winner will be one of at least 16 Cutler Scholars Award winners on campus in 1999. A selection committee interviews applicants and selects recipients.
Starting in the fall of 1998, two other Hughes scholarships will cover tuition and fees for two students at Ohio University. The scholarships are renewable for four years and will be awarded to students with financial need and academic promise.
The late Lewis Hughes founded Hughes-Burnett Inc., which operated 13 Dodge-Plymouth agencies in the Cleveland area before Hughes retired in 1950 and moved the company to Sarasota, Fla., where he remained president. Although he attended a one-room school house and never graduated from high school or attended college, Lewis was an expert at finances.
"Were it not for the astute financial talents of Lewis, there would be no Hughes-Burnett and contributions to education bearing his name," Leona said. "I know he would be very proud to be able to help provide an education for Oak Hill students -- an opportunity he never had."
Leona Hughes became president of Hughes-Burnett in 1971 following her husband's death. A resident of Sarasota, she is a member of the Ohio University Foundation and was awarded the foundation's highest honor, The John C. Baker Founders Award, in 1996 in recognition of her contributions to the Foundation. She is a co-founder of the Suncoast Ohio University Alumni Chapter and served on the National Alumni board and the Third Century Campaign Committee. She founded the Hughes Chair in nursing informatics at Sarasota Memorial Hospital, enabling Registered Nurses to complete a bachelor's degree in nursing.