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News Release

Last modified: Tuesday, August 8, 2006

Elkhart's Agarwal named Wells Scholar at IU

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Aug. 10, 2006

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Deepak Agarwal from Elkhart, Ind., has been selected as a Wells Scholar at Indiana University, one of 19 entering freshmen so honored. He will this fall join more than 320 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.

An AP Scholar with Honor, Agarwal graduated from Elkhart Central High School as a valedictorian. He earned distinction as a four-year member of his school's Science Olympiad team, winning second place in cell biology and third place in science of fitness at the state level. He also was selected to attend the National Youth Leadership Forum on Medicine. He served as co-captain of his school's Academic Super Bowl and Quiz Bowl teams, and he participated in Model United Nations.

A member of his school's varsity cross country and track teams, Agarwal received multiple school athletic awards, including the Scholastic Award. He also received a number of departmental awards, including the Senior Science Excellence Award. A participant in the University of Notre Dame's QuarkNet, a program in which students conduct research in high-energy subatomic particle physics, he worked on research using cosmic ray detectors.

He was a member of the National Honor Society and Elkhart Central's orchestra, and he served as vice president of the senior class and as a student council officer. Active in his community, Agarwal was named to the superintendent's student advisory council; was a member of Balvikas, an Indian youth group; attended Elkhart Rotary Club; and volunteered with Habitat for Humanity. Deepak plans to major in biochemistry and chemistry.

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.

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 four years of 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.

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