Commission for Women awards Women’s Empowerment Scholarships to 5 students

The Lebanon County Commission for Women has announced the recipients of its 2025 Women’s Empowerment Scholarships.

This year, five young women from Lebanon County will each receive a $1,000 scholarship to support their education. The scholarship assists students who have demonstrated exceptional leadership, academic achievement, and a commitment to pursuing their educational goals, according to a release.

“The Commission is proud to support these outstanding individuals and looks forward to witnessing their future accomplishments,” the release said.

The award certificates were presented by committee chair Sue Danielewicz and committee member Elizabeth Judd at the 15th annual Women’s Hall of Fame, held March 19 in Myerstown. The recipients are:

Whitney Bartal from Lebanon School District – Bartal will attend Susquehanna University in the fall with an intended major of theatre management. Her recommendation came from teacher and coach Megan Heefner. In her essay, which highlighted her journey to find ways to cope with anxiety and the loss of a loved one by suicide, she wrote, “Coping mechanisms have allowed me to be a better student, an effective communicator, a strong leader, and a more empathetic and compassionate person.”

Sophia Ndaro from Cedar Crest School District – Ndaro is still deciding what secondary school to attend. Her letter of recommendation was from Kayliegh Stroff, coach from Paramount Sports Complex. Her essay highlighted her experiences with financial insecurity and gave an insightful explanation of how financial challenges impacted her confidence and ability to fit in with her peers at school, noting, “Now I’m just thankful for the hardship I went through when I was in eighth grade. It reminds me that there is always light at the end of a tunnel.”

Victoria Plummer from ELCO School District – Plummer wants to be a nurse and has applied to several schools. Her letter of recommendation was from Emily Zimmerman. An avid dancer, her essay highlighted how dance helped her with her struggles with anxiety. She wrote, “I won’t necessarily hang up my dance shoes but I’m eager to try on a pair of nursing shoes.”

Eleana Schaffer from Palmyra Area School District – Schaffer has been accepted to the University of Delaware. Her letter of recommendation was from Bethany Barger, her high school math teacher. Her essay chronicled her experiences with a learning disability and her journey with accepting that being different wasn’t a bad thing, noting, “I didn’t let this IEP label me a ‘disabled learner,’ I used it to help me. My learning style was different and that was okay.”

Olivia Shutter from Northern Lebanon School District – Shutter applied to the York College of Pennsylvania’s nursing program. Her letter of recommendation was from Sierra Glynn, a close family friend. Her essay focused on the impact of her parents’ divorce, the subsequent absence of her father from her life, and the void his absence created along with the death of her great supporter, her grandmother. She wrote, “However I remain patient in myself, and I remembered the resilient, determined, and strong woman I have become.”

The Women’s Empowerment Scholarship is part of the commission’s ongoing efforts to promote the health and well-being of women and girls in the Lebanon Valley. The Lebanon County Commission for Women was established in 2003 by the Lebanon County Commissioners to identify, collect, and analyze information regarding issues that present obstacles to women.

For more information, please visit CommissionForWomen.org, or email info@commissionforwomen.org.