Seniors Mason Dols and Eleanor Johnston were the recipients of the Paul Rebholz scholarships at the Youth Engagement Leadership Academy earlier this month. They each received $2,500 toward their college tuition.

 YELA, a program hosted by the Woodbury Community Foundation, is a five-week summer course. Each week, academy students heard from community leaders, including the mayor, city council members, city staff, county commissioners, non-profit leaders, and business owners. They learned Woodbury’s history from members of the Woodbury Heritage Society. Another session took students to the HERO Center where Woodbury’s Public Safety Department demonstrated fire drills.

To qualify for the scholarship participants are expected to attend every session and write an essay on how the academy helped them understand the impact of giving back to the community. The scholarships are given by the Rebholz family in memory of former Woodbury city council member, Paul Rebholz, through the Rounds Fore Rebs Fund.

Editor’s Note: Manali Shah is a member of the Woodbury Community Foundation’s Board of Directors. The foundation serves as the fiscal sponsor for Woodbury News Net.