After his freshman orientation, Evan Baugh and his mother went out to eat. While at the restaurant, Evan received an email from Director of Undergraduate Recruitment Chinwe Okpalaoka telling him he had won the Kline Family Scholarship.

“My mom was so happy about it,” he said. “She was a little on the verge about me going to Ohio State in general. [The scholarship] really just kind of affirmed that Ohio State’s really where I should be.”

Now a senior studying systems and behavioral neuroscience, Evan plans to use his experience as a Buckeye to one day become a doctor. He has spent his college career gaining leadership skills through the Program for Advancing Scholarship and Service (PASS) and volunteering at the Wexner Medical Center as an ambassador.

When his volunteer work for the medical center was cut for student safety reasons during the pandemic, Ohio State offered alternatives for volunteering. Evan worked to assemble COVID test kits, sterilize masks and screen patients so health care workers could remain on the front lines.

As the campus returns to business as usual, Evan is especially grateful for his scholarship support. “The scholarship eliminated the financial burden and took away from some of my stress. I can use my time to get other experiences, join community groups, invest more time in those groups and my schoolwork, and overall have an enjoyable college experience.”