Local High School Students Make News

CONWAY — Jennifer Lea Vos, of Prairie Grove, recently was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa Society’s Beta chapter at Hendrix College in Conway. Vos is majoring in classes at Hendrix.

Founded in 1876, Hendrix College is a national leader in engaged liberal arts and sciences education. For the fifth consecutive year, Hendrix was named one of the country’s “Up and Coming” liberal arts colleges by U.S. News and World Report.

Payne Receives

Scholarships

Clarksville — Zackary Payne, a senior at Farmington High School, has been awarded an Achievement Scholarship and a Music Scholarship to attend University of the Ozarks, beginning the Fall 2013 Semester.

Zackary is the son of Jimmy and Michele Payne. His grandparents are Jimmy and Dewone Payne of Bran- son, Mo.; Gilda Reeves, of Lonoke, Ark.; and Bobby Joe Elmore, of Carlisle, Ark. He plans to major in music at Ozarks.

Zackary has participated in band and choir throughout high school. He earned all-state solo and ensemble honors in band and received a superior ranking in the sextet brass ensemble. He was also an all-state choir qualifier and was a member of the Northwest Arkansas Regional Choir in 2011 and 2012. In addition, he has been active as a community and church volunteer in such projects as World Changers mission trip, Vacation Bible School and the Peace at Home Family Shelter.

The two scholarships have a combined value of more than $ 16,000 per year.

The Achievement Scholarship is a leadership type scholarship based on participation in school, volunteer, civic and/or church activities and organizations. The Music Scholarship is based on demonstrated skill and ability in the area of music.

University of the Ozarks is a four-year, comprehensive university located in Clarksville, Ark. It has been ranked by U. S. News and World Report as a “top tier” Southern Region university for the past 12 years.

Lincoln Senior Wins Ribbons

FAYETTEVILLE — Mike Norton, from Lincoln, a senior with a double major in poultry science and agricultural business in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Live Sciences at the University of Arkansas received two gold ribbons in the college’s first Outstanding Project and Thesis competition.

Norton received the gold ribbon award for the Outstanding Bumpers College Honors Project/ Thesis, and was part of a research team that won a gold ribbon for Excellent Quality.

Norton’s thesis was “Cost- Benefit Analysis of Farmer Training in Ghanaian Cocoa Farming.” He was mentored by assistant professor Lanier Nalley.

In 2009, the World Cocoa Foundation ( WCF), in conjunction with the Gates Foundation, initiated the Cocoa Livelihoods Program to increase farmer income and strengthen local service capacity.

Using data from 2010 and 2011, the goal was to estimate the change in net value for producers in Ghana who used what they learned from the program. Norton’s analyses showed the average cocoa yield increased 75.24 percent after the program was completed.

The Norton was part of the five member Leadership in Food Policy team.

Their project was “Herbicide-Resistant Soybeans in Arkansas: Lessons Learned and Future Direction.” The group was mentored by Dean Mike Vayda, Rom and graduate assistant Michele Helton.