This year’s Southern Lehigh Donley Award recipient is senior Jake Stattel. The award is a scholarship founded on scholarship, leadership, and service to the community. A few recent recipients from Southern Lehigh include graduates Paul Ermlich, Isabella Uribe, and Rylee Maron.

Ed Donley is the former chairman of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. One senior student from every school in the Lehigh Valley is honored. The application is given to the top ten students with the highest grade point average in his or her class. A high school committee of administrators and counselors then select the most deserving recipient.

To be eligible for the highly selective award, each candidate must hold a class rank within the top five percent in the class as well as demonstrate significant evidence of leadership and community service.

“I think that often times one of the most important factors in determining who will represent Southern Lehigh High School for the Donley Award really comes down to community service,” guidance counselor Mrs. Lynne Kelly said. “When you look at Jake Stattel, that was what set his application apart.”

Stattel volunteers with the Lehigh Valley Veterans History Project in which he assists in the planning and execution of monthly meetings. He has also conducted oral history interviews with veterans for recordings to be sent to the Library of Congress as part of the Library of Congress’ Veterans History Project.

In addition, he also interned with historian Michael Piersa at the National Museum of Industrial History in Bethlehem. There he worked with museum administration tasks and the restoration and archiving of museum artifacts.

As a vice president of the Fountain Hill Elementary School Homework Club, Stattel participated in after school tutoring of underprivileged students in Bethlehem.

“I’ve worked exceptionally hard to reach my full potential, and this scholarship will help me in my endeavor to further my education after high school,” Stattel said.

Upon graduating from Southern Lehigh, Stattel plans to attend Swarthmore College, a small liberal arts school outside Philadelphia. He hopes to take various humanities courses before eventually deciding what career to pursue. His ultimate goal is to obtain his Ph.D.

“I don’t like to plan things out,” Stattel said. “I like to go with the flow.”