Raynie Schnell named 2026 Lilly Endowment Community Scholar

Dubois County Community Foundation announced the recipient of the 2026 Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship for Dubois County – Raynie Schnell of Northeast Dubois Jr/Sr High School.

Schnell was selected from an applicant pool of 160 candidates across all four high schools in Dubois County. After the applicant pool was narrowed, nominees were submitted to the statewide administrator of the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program, Independent Colleges of Indiana (ICI), for selection of scholarship recipients.

Schnell is the daughter of Lee and Danielle Schnell of Celestine. She plans to major in Animal Science with a pre-veterinary medicine concentration and pursue veterinary school after graduation.

Each Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship provides full tuition, required fees, and up to $900 per year for required books and equipment for four years of full-time undergraduate study leading to a baccalaureate degree at any eligible Indiana public or private nonprofit college or university. Scholars also join the Lilly Scholars Network (LSN), which connects them with resources and opportunities to lead on campus and in their communities. Both the scholarship program and LSN are supported by grants from Lilly Endowment to Independent Colleges of Indiana (ICI).

Lilly Endowment Community Scholars are known for their community involvement, academic achievement, character and leadership.

Lilly Endowment created the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program for the 1997-1998 school year. Since then, grant funding in excess of $490 million has supported more than 5,300 Indiana students who have received scholarships through the program.

Since its inception in 1997–98, Lilly Endowment has supported this program with tuition grants totaling more than $505 million, benefiting over 5,400 Indiana students. The program’s primary purposes are: 1) to raise the level of educational attainment in Indiana; 2) to increase awareness of the beneficial roles Indiana community foundations play; and 3) to encourage and support Lilly Scholars’ engagement with Indiana leaders to improve quality of life statewide.