Last modified: Monday, August 15, 2005
Indianapolis' Bell and Lin named Wells Scholars at Indiana University
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AUG. 15, 2005
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana University President Adam W. Herbert announced today (Aug. 15) that Jason R. Bell and Janice Lin of Indianapolis have been selected as Wells Scholars at Indiana University. Bell has been selected as a senior at IU and Lin is one of 19 entering freshmen so honored. They join more than 300 others who have been named Wells Scholars since 1990.
The scholarship, named in honor of the late IU Chancellor Herman B Wells, ranks among the most competitive and prestigious awards offered by any American university. Since its inception, more than two dozen Wells Scholars have gone on to earn prestigious Rhodes, Truman, Marshall, Soros, Mitchell, Churchill, Fulbright and Goldwater scholarships for advanced study.
Many previous Wells Scholars today contribute to Indiana as residents who are attorneys, doctors, school teachers and business people and even an ordained minister. Others have gone on to clerk for Indiana and U.S. Supreme Court justices, are engaged in international relief and service efforts, and are scholars at other renowned educational institutions such as Harvard Business School and Cornell Law School. There are Wells Scholars currently serving in the Armed Forces and other positions in government.
"This program has a spectacular track record for developing future leaders who reflect the example and vision of former IU Chancellor Herman B Wells," Herbert said. "Its impact is reflected in the achievements of past Wells Scholars who have remained in and contributed to the Hoosier state, and by those who represent the university and our state with great distinction both nationally and throughout the world. Since its establishment 16 years ago, IU also has used the Wells Scholars program as a model for other scholarship programs that enable IU to attract to our campuses more of the best students in the state and nation."
To honor Wells, IU created the Wells Scholars Program, which began with fund-raising efforts in 1988 and the appointment of Professor Breon Mitchell as its founding director. In 1990, IU welcomed its first class of Wells Scholars and on June 7, 1992, Wells' 90th birthday, he was officially presented with the Wells Scholars Program, as a gift from his many friends and admirers. After his death in the spring of 2000, this community of talented and dedicated young Scholars remains as a permanent legacy of his educational vision.
Wells Scholars receive full tuition and course-related fees, as well as a living stipend for undergraduate study on the Bloomington campus of IU. The program also offers special seminars, an optional year of study abroad, and support for a summer research project or internship. The Wells program emphasizes close interaction with faculty, academic and career advising, opportunities for community service, and contact with distinguished visitors.
Wells Scholars are selected for having demonstrated exceptional qualities of character and leadership and distinction both inside and outside of the classroom.
Bell, a senior at IU with plans to begin his career in management consulting, is completing majors in accounting, finance and legal studies and a minor in leadership, ethics and social action. A member of the Kelley School of Business Mitte Honors Program and the national honorary accounting fraternity, Beta Alpha Psi, he has been a Mitte Scholar and an Alpert Scholar.
He is president of the Kelley School's Student Accounting Society and was a member of the winning team in business case competitions involving the Target Corp., Bear Stearns and two other events. As part of his LESA minor, he worked with Monroe County officials to create a five-year projection of county finances. A gold member of Civic Leadership Development, he was an Alternative Spring Break Steering Committee member and led his own service team to work as classroom aides in a Philadelphia school.
Bell has interned with Ernst & Young LLP, Bee Window Inc. and Junior Achievement of Central Indiana Inc. He also helped establish a non-profit business in Indianapolis as a member of its board of directors. Active in Big Brothers Big Sisters, he was named the 2004 Bloomington Boys and Girls Club "Big" of the Year. He graduated from North Central High School in Indianapolis, where he was given the Yale Alumni Book Award for outstanding personal character and intellectual promise.
A Presidential Scholar, a National Merit Scholar and a Hoosier Scholar, Lin graduated from Lawrence North High School. She was honored with the Indiana Council of Teachers of Mathematics Outstanding Student Award, the President's Volunteer Service Award and a Wellesley Book Award. In addition, she was named an Indianapolis Star Academic All-Star and a Phi Beta Kappa Outstanding Junior.
A four-year member of Key Club International, Lin served as district lieutenant governor her junior year and as an international trustee and committee chair her senior year and was honored with the Robert F. Lucas Outstanding Lieutenant Governor Award. She served as an officer of the Indiana Junior Classical League at local and state levels, and she earned a gold medal and other honors on the National Latin Exam.
She received superior ratings at state for performances on three instruments and was named to the Indiana All-State and the New World Youth Symphony orchestras. She was a member of the National Latin Honor Society; the National Honor Society, which she served as chapter secretary; and the National Forensics League, which honored her with a Degree of Distinction. She was also a member of various other community and school organizations, and she holds a black belt in taekwondo. She will explore a variety of fields before choosing a major.
