
Foundation News
Sixth Group of Scholars Announced
We are proud to announce Timothy P. O’Shaughnessy Foundation’s newest Lifelong Learning Scholarship recipients!

Alexsis Barkus – Wichita South High
Elijah DeFore – Wichita Northeast Magnet High
Harry Ling – Wichita Collegiate School
Jana Orief – Wichita Northwest High School
Caleb Rogers – Derby High School
Jacob Timler – Classical School of Wichita
Barkus Recognized at Senior Ceremony
Alexsis Barkus, South High, 2025, was recognized for her outstanding achievements at the South Senior High Celebration Ceremony on April 30th.
Alexsis was honored as the Class of 2025 Valedictorian. She maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout high school and ranked highest academically among her peers. She also received the Honor Roll cord for consistently earning a GPA of 3.5 or higher and the double gold cord for her two-year membership in the National Honor Society, where she upheld its principles and fulfilled her commitments.
In addition, she received the prestigious KSHSAA Citizenship Award, given to one graduating male and female each year who exemplify respect, responsibility, and reverence. She was also recognized as a Kansas Governor’s Scholar, placing in the top 1% of her graduating class based on weighted GPA.
Her commitment to career and college readiness was acknowledged with a double cord for completing and going above and beyond in the Law Enforcement CTE Pathway and a cord for being a WSU Tech Completer, having successfully earned over nine college credits.
Reflecting on the honors, Alexsis shared, “I am overwhelmingly honored to receive so many awards, especially the KSHSAA award. My goal was to set a good example for younger students and represent South High well, so the fact that they thought so highly of me to give me that award means the world to me. I am so proud that I achieved all of this at South High School; I love my school, and I cannot wait to return and be an involved alumnus.”
Orief and Rogers: DECA State Champions!
We are thrilled to share that 2025 scholars Jana Orief (Northwest High) and Caleb Rogers (Derby High) were named DECA State Champions at the 2025 DECA State Career Development Conference at K-State!
Jana earned the title of State Champion in the Start-Up Business Plan event, where she developed a 10-page business plan and presented her pitch deck.
Caleb and his team placed first in the prepared Hospitality and Tourism Operations Research event, a highly competitive category that required a 20-page research report and a 15-minute presentation. He also placed fourth in his individual Business Services Marketing event.
These exceptional performances qualified both scholars for DECA’s International Career Development Conference in April.
Way to go, Jana and Caleb! We’re rooting for you at ICDC!