Group of 10 Emerson/McKnight Scholars recognized heading into 2025-26 academic year
The latest group of Emerson/McKnight Scholars—10 current students from the Ashland University Dauch College of Business and Economics (COBE)—is ready to take on the 2025-26 academic year.
Each of the Emerson/McKnight Scholars will receive a $3,500 scholarship, an award in addition to the student’s financial aid package. To be selected for the scholarship, a student must be a business major (other than sport management or fashion merchandising), hold a cumulative 3.0 GPA or higher, have demonstrated outstanding leadership in the College, on campus and in the community and possess the potential to be a high contributor in their chosen career.
This year’s group of 10 Emerson/McKnight Scholar recipients are:
Allyson Chapman, business management and sport management major from Sunbury, Ohio
(Big Walnut High School)
Anna Corbel, an economics and political economy major from Mirabel-aux-Baronnies, France
(Lycée François Arago High School)
James Henley, a supply chain management major from Loudonville, Ohio
(Loudonville High School)
Daylen Madison, an accounting major from Medina, Ohio (Highland High School)
Kayin McDonald, an economics, political science, history, political economy, international relations, philosophy and religion major from Ashland, Ohio
(Ashland High School)
Paige Nicholson, a finance major from Durban, South Africa
(Danville Park Girls High School)
Klaira Paramore, an economics major from Ashland, Ohio (Ashland High School)
Emily Pate, an accounting major from West Chester, Ohio (Lakota West High School)
Ashley Veldheer, a marketing and sport management major from Hudsonville, Mich. (Unity Christian High School)
Abigail Wheeler, a finance major from Minerva, Ohio (Minerva High School)
“We feel very privileged to have the Emerson/McKnight Scholars program in the Dauch College of Business and Economics,” stated Dan Fox, dean of COBE. “The program benefits our students in many different ways. In addition to providing the extra financial assistance, it also helps the students connect with a world class company and learn about possible career opportunities.”
Paul McKnight, retired senior vice president for organizational planning at Emerson, added, “Successful companies must have the right talent in the right place at the right time if they expect to win in the global marketplace. Because advancing people is a top priority at Emerson, we created the Emerson Scholars program in the Dauch College of Business and Economics at Ashland University.”
A $175,000 initial grant from Emerson funded the creation of the program in 2007 and it was renewed in 2013, 2018 and 2023, with financial support also coming from Paul ’70 and Lani ’68 McKnight. Emerson/McKnight Scholars are selected annually, and with this year’s recipients, there have now been 169 such honorees at AU through the years.
Pictured left-to-right are James Henley, Allyson Chapman, Paige Nicholson, Emily Pate, Abigail Wheeler, Paul McKnight ’70, Daylen Madison, Klaira Paramore, Anna Corbel, Ashley Veldheer and Kayin McDonald.
