WHEELING, W. Va. -- Two outstanding high school students have been awarded the prestigious Stephen J. Laut, S.J. Scholarship to Wheeling Jesuit University.

The four-year, full tuition scholarships have been granted to Daniel Villarreal of Loyola Blakefield High School in Towson, MD and Stacie Hestand of Lowell Catholic High School in Lowell, MA.

"Daniel and Stacie have distinguished themselves in their high school careers, in their performance in standardized testing and, most importantly, in person.” stated Professor John Whitehead, Director or the Laut Honors Program. “They are smart, personable and ready to begin contributing to the honors program as soon as they hit campus this fall. This is one of the great privileges of the program -- to work with the best."

The two students competed in a rigorous, multi-stage competition against twenty other honors students and were chosen for their exceptional performance by members of the Laut Honors faculty. The competition is designed to test the students’ abilities both inside and outside the classroom, and consists of an essay and an interview.

“I’m both honored and excited to have been chosen to receive this scholarship. The competition was tough and I wasn't expecting to win. I'm really looking forward to attending WJU in the fall!” said Hestand, daughter of Bruce and Kathy Hestand.

Villarreal, son of Fernando and Martha Villarreal, and future WJU Rugby Student Athlete expressed his excitement. “I am incredibly proud, honored and humbled to have received such a prestigious award to such a great university. Throughout my high school career, I have known that my college experience would be challenging and that I would seek the best environment to grow as a man and scholar to better serve the world. I know that Wheeling is the perfect place for me to excel and continue my education and life journey to success. I know that the next four years will be challenging but will ultimately be for the best. I cannot wait to begin the next chapter of my life as a Wheeling Jesuit Cardinal and contribute all that I can to such a great institution.”

"The Laut Honors Scholarship is, in my opinion, the highest honor Wheeling Jesuit University bestows to any of its new recruits,” Professor Whitehead added. “Our committee continues to be heartened by the quality of the students who compete for these valuable awards, and we're honored that great students from Maryland and Massachusetts have us on their radar,” stated Professor John Whitehead, director of the Laut Honors Program.

The Laut Honors Program, named in honor one of Wheeling Jesuit’s former English professor Rev. Stephen Laut, is an example of the ideals of the University -- educating students for “Life, Leadership, and Service.”

For more information on the Laut Honors Program, please visit www.wju.edu/academics/laut. For complete information on Wheeling Jesuit scholarship programs or admissions events, please contact the Admissions Office at 1-800-624-6992 or explore Wheeling Jesuit online at www.wju.edu.