Nebraska

NU unveils full cost of attendance scholarship, stipend for perfect ACT performance | Nebraska Examiner

Published

11 months ago

February 5, 2024

NU unveils full cost of attendance scholarship, stipend for perfect ACT performance | Nebraska Examiner

LINCOLN — The University of Nebraska announced Monday it will pay Nebraska students who score perfectly on the ACT to obtain an NU education.

Interim NU President Chris Kabourek and Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen, center, are flanked, from left, by University of Nebraska at Omaha Chancellor Joanne Li and Regents Jack Stark of Omaha and Kathy Wilmot of Beaver City. Feb. 5, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)

Interim NU President Chris Kabourek joined with regents, state senators, three NU chancellors and Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen to outline the inaugural President’s Scholarship for in-state students who obtain a 36 on the ACT. The scholarship will cover cost of attendance — including tuition, fees, books and room and board — and provide a $5,000 annual stipend “to pursue whatever your dream in life is.”

Kabourek said NU wants Nebraska students to list the university at the top of their list of desired colleges or universities, but many are leaving the state to continue their education. Moving forward, he’s said, NU can’t lose its “best and brightest.”

“If you sign with us, we’re going to go celebrate it just like we celebrate our five-star athletes,” Kabourek said at a news conference, explaining that many student-athletes receive a stipend.

Regent Tim Clare of Lincoln, chair of the NU Board of Regents. Feb. 5, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)

Unlike the Regents Scholarship, a top scholarship that waives the cost of tuition for qualifying students, the new scholarship will pay NU for students’ attendance. Kabourek, who concurrently serves as NU’s chief financial officer, said the new business model will help with sustainability.

The President’s Scholarship begins from a $5 million endowment with hopes to grow in a future fundraising campaign to students who score 33 or above on the ACT.

NU Scholarship to combat ‘brain drain’

Kabourek and Pillen said the President’s Scholarship is a first step of many in combating the state’s brain drain issue, which they said they want to address as many young people, including college graduates, are leaving the state.

Between fall 2020 and fall 2022, about 20% of top ACT-scoring students chose NU, according to an NU spokesperson. In fall 2023, that figure was three top-performing students.

“Candidly, I’m embarrassed at that,” Kabourek said. “I’m embarrassed that we’re getting out-competed each and every day for our own talent.”

Pillen said anecdotally that of the 31 students with perfect ACT scores he honored last summer, 20 had already chosen a non-Nebraska institution.

Regent Tim Clare of Lincoln, chair of the NU Board of Regents, said that growing Nebraska is a “total team effort” and that he’s excited NU is doing more to prevent its high-caliber students from being enticed by other opportunities.

“We can settle for the status quo or we can do better and compete for every student,” he said.

Four R’s of success

Regent Rob Schafer of Beatrice, board vice chair, said it comes down to four simple words in working to fulfill NU’s mission of serving the state: recruit, retain, reward and retire.

University of Nebraska regents, chancellors and interim NU President Chris Kabourek join with state senators and Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen following the announcement of a new scholarship for top-performing Nebraska students. Feb. 5, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)

NU must recruit, retain and reward its talent, he explained, with the hope they retire as Nebraskans.

“It’s early in the year and we’re just getting started, and we’re going to move Nebraska forward,” Schafer said.

Kabourek said even if NU can get just one student to choose Nebraska because of the scholarship, it will be a win because “who knows” their future — from farming or ranching to business to cancer research or nuclear physiology.

“Who knows what the story is or what the dreams of that student might be,” Kabourek said. “So if we can only get one student, it’s been a success in my opinion.”

Metropolitan Community College launches historic scholarship

On the same day NU launched its new scholarship, Metropolitan Community College announced its largest-ever endowed scholarship, courtesy of the Holland Foundation.

The $3 million endowed Dick and Mary Holland Scholarship will help create pathways to postsecondary education in skilled trades, health and technical sciences programs, beginning with the fall semester, a news release states. In addition to tuition, the program may provide funding for fees, books, required certifications, tools, equipment and supplies.

The fund is anticipated to provide a minimum of 24 annual scholarships and prioritizes first-generation students, according to Amy Recker, executive director of the MCC Foundation.

“The endowed scholarship continues Dick and Mary’s legacy of giving,” said Deb Love, president of the Holland Foundation. “They were such observant, giving and caring people who always had a willingness in their hearts to help others.”

Recker described the gift as “truly transformational” and said MCC is grateful to the Holland Foundation for entrusting MCC “with this unprecedented investment in our students, programs and communities.”

— By Zach Wendling

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Nebraska

Georgia Transfer Defensive Back Justyn Rhett Commits to Nebraska

Published

3 hours ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Georgia Transfer Defensive Back Justyn Rhett Commits to Nebraska

An SEC defensive back is headed to Lincoln via the transfer portal.

Former Georgia DB Justyn Rhett has committed to Nebraska. He has three years of eligibility remaining.

Rhett appeared in four games over two seasons for the powerhouse Bulldogs. He finishes his Georgia career with three tackles.

The 6-1, 200-pound DB got to Athens from the football factory out of Las Vegas, Bishop Gorman. A four-star prospect out of high school, Rhett was selected to play in Under Armour All-America Game and picked Georgia over Alabama, Michigan, Florida State, LSU, Tennessee, Oregon, Notre Dame, Oregon, and more.

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Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube, and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.

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Nebraska

900 Square Feet: Recapping Louisville-Pitt, Penn State-Nebraska

Published

10 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Press Room

900 Square Feet: Recapping Louisville-Pitt, Penn State-Nebraska

LOUISVILLE, Kentucky — One match left: Louisville, which knocked out Pittsburgh, plays Penn State, which ousted Nebraska with a five-set reverse sweep.

ESPN and Big Ten Network analyst Emily Ehman and VolleyballMag editor Lee Feinswog look back on an incredible Thursday night at the NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship:

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Nebraska

Dana Holgorsen, John Butler talk bowl prep and being “light on your feet”

Published

18 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Press Room

Dana Holgorsen, John Butler talk bowl prep and being “light on your feet”

In today’s college football, coaches must have their head on a swivel.

That’s true during the season of course, but it’s now a way of life once the transfer portal opens in December and rosters start moving and shaking. And things get even more wild if you’re at a program that’s playing in a bowl game, or even the College Football Playoff.

It’s a balancing act that all staffs are going through right now. Nebraska’s included.

“You’ve got to be light on your feet, man,” Nebraska defensive coordinator John Butler said during a press conference over Zoom on Thursday. “I mean, you’re maybe in the middle of a game-plan meeting and all of a sudden you got to jump out and you’re having a 30-minute meeting with a prospect that’s in on a visit, or you’re jumping on a Zoom doing it. Or you’re watching 15 minutes of tape to make sure that, hey, this guy just jumped in and he wants to visit us. So I think you got to be a fast thinker and mover and a shaker, quite frankly.”

This whole process has taught Butler, who spent the 2024 season as the defensive backs coach under now-departed DC Tony White, that these traits are as important as ever: Being decisive. Being organized. Following a road map to achieve a goal and not deviating from it when there’s chaos all over.

“You’ve got to have a plan and a vision for what you’re looking for, because everything happens so fast,” Butler said. “You have a guy get in and get out, get in and get signed. And at the same time, you also got to keep an eye on your roster constantly, because there’s people reaching out. There’s people reaching out to your players, whether it’s direct or it’s people reaching out through a third party. And it’s unfortunate in this environment.

“People said, ‘Hey, it’s like NFL free agency.’ No, it’s not. NFL free agency is regulated.”

As Husker fans have come to learn, just because a player says he’s going to enter the transfer portal doesn’t mean he actually will. And sometimes when a player actually enters his name in the portal, there’s always a chance they could withdraw their name and return to their program if each side wants.

Nebraska saw that happen with defensive lineman Keona Davis, who briefly entered the portal before withdrawing and staying at NU for 2025. There was also running back Emmett Johnson — he announced he would enter the portal but never made it there.

Holgorsen played a key role in convincing Johnson to stay at Nebraska.

“We had some long talks after the season, and I got to know him better as a person,” Holgorsen said of his relationship with Johnson. “I did that with a bunch of them, but him in particular was probably about the first one that came in and was excited about what we did, but there was some buts. So we had some long talks. I think he’s a great kid and he’s going to be a special player here. Excited to coach him.”

On Holgorsen’s side of the ball, he’ll have to adjust his game plan now that he’ll be without a handful of players he was able to use during the regular season.

Running back Dante Dowdell transferred to Kentucky on Friday. A tight end Holgorsen really liked, Nate Boerkircher, transferred to Texas A&M. Receiver Isaiah Neyor has chosen to opt out of the Pinstripe Bowl to focus on his NFL aspirations. Offensive lineman Micah Mazzccua, who began the year as the starting right guard but finished the season rotating with Gunnar Gottula at left tackle, won’t play in the bowl because he’s getting surgery to fix a torn labrum he played through during the season.

There will be holes to fill on Holgorsen’s offense in the bowl game and beyond in 2025. But Holgorsen brushes all of this chaos off. He’s a go-with-the-flow guy. He doesn’t pretend to have answers to fix college football. What he does have, though, is a plan.

“There’s been a lot of talk out there about something needs to happen. That’s above my pay grade,” Holgorsen said. “So, the few kids who decided to do that (leave), we wish them well, and you just go replace them. It’s as simple as that.”

Part of that replacement process needs to happen for the bowl game with current members of the roster. Behind Emmett Johnson, expect Rahmir Johnson — he’s native of the Bronx and will have several family members and friends at Yankee Stadium — to play often as it’ll be his final game in a Husker uniform.

But with Dowdell and Gabe Ervin Jr. gone from the team, perhaps this Pinstripe Bowl will feature another big back on Nebraska’s roster who’s seldom been used: redshirt freshman Kwinten Ives, a 6-3, 210-pounder.

“You know, 23 (Dowdell) isn’t playing in the bowl game but 28 (Ives) is gonna go in there and he’s gonna play his tail off because he’s had nine spectacular practices,” Holgorsen said. “I think that’s how you got to look at it. You don’t worry about the ones that aren’t playing. You worry about the ones that are playing, and you coach them and you try to develop them, put them in position to hopefully be successful.”