Westminster Junior is First Grow Your Own Scholarship Recipient

Representatives from the Fulton Public Schools joined Westminster College on March 23 in Mueller Leadership Hall for a lively celebration of a new scholarship and its first recipient: Sarah Crostic, ’23 IND.

The district awarded the Holts Summit, MO, junior a Grow Your Own scholarship to help with expenses related to student teaching next fall.

The grant is offered to junior and senior education majors at Westminster College and William Wood University who agree to both student teach and remain with the district for four years. The grant also provides a scholarship for a graduating senior of Fulton High School who plans to major in education at either institution.

“It is an honor to be the first Grow Your Own recipient and be in the position to mentor my peers, who will follow in my footsteps,” Crostic says.

Dr. Barri Bumgarner, associate professor of education, explains the Grow Your Own program is funded by a grant written with both the local colleges and public schools in mind.

“This grant is a great opportunity for everyone involved. It helps give our graduates jobs while providing the community with a steady stream of young, enthusiastic educators who are invested in the town and their alma maters,” Bumgarner says.

Crostic will student teach in a fourth-grade classroom at McIntire Elementary on Hickman Avenue, near the Westminster campus.

Originally from Arnold, MO, Crostic says her family moved to Callaway County last year after she transferred to Westminster from a larger college. She says she feels at home both the within the local community and at the College.

“Here at Westminster, I feel loved, appreciated, and cared for,” Crostic emphasizes. “Every educational need I’ve had has been met, my ideas and thoughts are valued in my classes, and all the friends I have made are amazing.”

A member of Westminster’s Education Association, a certain portion of Crostic’s social calendar concentrates on educational leadership skills and activities.

Meanwhile, this summer, the St. Louis Cardinals fan is enjoying keeping up with summer baseball, gardening on her Callaway County farm, caring for her 1-year-old pug, Stella, and helping teach summer school in the Fulton district.

Crostic adds she is also busily preparing for student teaching and looking forward to the fall semester.

“It can be scary to be the first person to ever do something, but that has not been the case,” Crostic says. “I feel so welcomed into the Fulton Public Schools community and so well cared for by my professors at Westminster College.”