QCESC Scholarship Recipients 2025
Adam Bratcher, Pleasant Valley High School
$1,000 Augustana College
Adam is a senior at Pleasant Valley High School. He was introduced to STEM concepts and engineering at Riverdale Heights Elementary, where he was a part of the extended learning program. Throughout highschool he has taken many challenging courses centered around engineering, and attributes his passion for engineering to some of the great teachers he has had. Also, during that time he was a member of both the varsity baseball team and the varsity football team, earning All-Conference recognition for his athletic ability, as well as his academic achievement. Adam plans on attending Augustana College, where he will continue to pursue engineering, while also playing baseball.
Lillian Reaver, Sterling High School
$1,500 Iowa State University
Lillian Reaver is a senior at Sterling High School. For all 4 years of her high school career she has been on her high school’s dance team, and this year was named captain. She is also involved in student council, young doctors league, rotary, and national honor society. She has also participated in choir and travel club. She has a weighted gpa of 4.0 and has received an award since her sophomore year for her gpa. This year she received December student of the month. Outside of school she is involved in Woodlawn Art Academy’s dance program and their competition team. Lillian plans to attend Iowa State University to study biomedical engineering.
Aspirations: Lillian hopes to use her degree to create devices and equipment to improve human health.
Claire O’Melia, Davenport Central High School
$2,000 St Ambrose University
Claire is a senior at Davenport Central high school with a weighted GPA of 4.7 being in the top 7% of her class. She is a 4+ year honor-roll student including achieving academic excellence, being proficient in her honors and AP classes and earning several awards for it. She is dual enrolled through Eastern Iowa Community College. Claire currently is a member of the National Honors Society and acts as a student coordinator and media manager for the Gray Matters Collective DCHS chapter. Within athletics, Claire is a 4-year Varsity Track & Field sprinter and hurdler who has gone to state as an alternate and primary. She is also captain of the JV Cross Country team. In the past, she has been involved in First Tech Challenge robotics (FTC) and the Girls Learn International volunteer group.
When Claire is not attending school activities she is working at Dry Goods as a keyholder, lifeguarding and teaching swim lessons at Davenport public pools, or is present at youth group on Wednesday nights. Between balancing her many activities and responsibilities, Claire enjoys spending time with her friends and family, going to the gym, listening to music, trying new foods, and giving back to the community.
In the fall, Claire plans to attend Saint Ambrose University to major in Mathematics and run for their Track & Field team as a Fighting Bee.
Aspiration: Claire hopes to use her current and expanding knowledge in mathematics to enhance the world’s efficiency while representing women in STEM.
Keaton Ehrke, Pleasant Valley High School
$2,000 University of Iowa
Keaton Ehrke is a senior at Pleasant Valley High School. He is currently taking multiple dual-enrollment courses at Scott Community College and has maintained a 4.0 GPA there as well as been nominated for the President’s List program. He has completed engineering and PLTW courses all four years of high school and has participated in multiple QCESC competitions, achieving second place in Bridge Building and first place in the Trebuchet competition along with his teammates. He is currently continuing his engineering education at SCC with the capstone Engineering Academy course, where he will collaborate with other students to solve real-world engineering problems at John Deere. He is also a four-year member of the Pleasant Valley Spartan Band, where he holds the first chair euphonium position. In his free time, Keaton enjoys spending time with family and friends and spends his summers out on the water. He is an avid surfer, wakeboarder, and fisher and loves doing anything water sports-related.
Keaton will be attending the University of Iowa this fall to pursue a degree in Industrial Engineering.
Aspirations: Keaton hopes that he can use his STEM degree to create engineering solutions that will positively affect and improve the lives of people all over the world.
Brody Bender, Sherrard High School
$3,000 American Society of Civil Engineers
Brody is a senior at Sherrard High School I have played 4 years of basketball and baseball and 2 years of golf and football. I was also a captain on the football team and I’m a captain on the basketball team. I have maintained a 4.467 weighted GPA through high school, named an Illinois State Scholar, and have made high honor roll every semester through high school. I am an officer of my school’s chapter of the National Honor Society where I was in charge of setting up a hunger drive to stock our local community food pantries. I plan on attending the University of Wisconsin-Platteville to get a degree in Civil Engineering.
Aspirations- Get a degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Platteville to create long lasting sustainable infrastructure in my local community and all over the world.
Parker Millage, Pleasant Valley High School
$1,000 American Society of Civil Engineers
Parker Millage is a Senior at Pleasant Valley High School. He has taken several honors, AP, and dual enrollment classes through Scott Community College. At PV He currently has a 3.84 GPA. He has taken Engineering and PLTW courses all four years of high school. He is continuing engineering education by taking Engineering Academy through SCC where they will go to John Deer to challenge their engineering problem-solving abilities. Additionally, he is a four-year member of Pleasant Valley’s Soccer and cross-country team where he was named most inspirational. Parker is an active member of his church, serving on the parking team and regularly attending Youth Group. He also spent several years in Boy Scouts achieving the rank of Eagle Scout. In his free time, he loves spending time with his family and being active outside. Parker plans to head to Iowa State this fall to major in Civil engineering.
Aspirations: Parker hopes to make long-lasting infrastructure that improves the quality of life for local communiti
Jacob Neymeyer, North Scott High School
$3,000 American Society of Civil Engineers
Jacob Neymeyer is a senior at North Scott High School. His favorite class is AP Calculus 1, and has taken multiple dual-enrollment classes through Eastern Iowa Community Colleges. Jacob has maintained an unweighted 4.0 GPA during his time at North Scott. Jacob is an active member of Future Business Leaders of America. Jacob is also a dedicated athlete. He has participated in soccer for four years of which he was elected as team captain on varsity. Jacob will be attending Iowa State with a major in civil engineering.
Outside of school, Jacob is an avid outdoorsman. He enjoys amateur storm chasing during the summer. He is a fisherman year-round on the Mississippi River and its tributaries, and hunts during the fall and winter. The rest of his free time in the summer is spent working on the farm preparing produce for the farmers’ market and managing crops.
Aspirations: Jacob wants to funnel his natural passions for math and nature to reduce the effects of natural disasters on people and to preserve the environment making it available for everybody to enjoy.
Robert Day, Bettendorf High School
$2,500 National Defense Industrial Association
Hello, my name is Robert Day. I am a senior at Bettendorf High School. I have taken both honors and AP classes throughout high school with additional dual credit courses, like Calculus 1 & 2, Composition 1, and Engineering Academy, at Scott Community College. I am a part of the National Honors Society and French Honors Society for Bettendorf. As a senior, I serve on the BHS SELL Crew which works to help new students and new freshmen as they enter high school. I am an active member of the music department at Bettendorf and have participated in Marching, Concert, Pep, Jazz, and Show Bands. In addition to music, I have played various sports such as Football, Basketball, Tennis, Baseball, and Track/Field. Although I am passionate about music and sports, I have dedicated most of my time to First Robotics. Within the program, I have been actively participating for 8 years starting in 5th grade with First Lego League and ending in high school with First Tech Challenge. I was elected team captain of #8672 UBett Robotics at Bettendorf High School as well as being appointed to Iowa’s First Robotics Student Leadership Board. Within the board, I am a part of the Building a Community and Leadership Training committees. Outside of school, I work as a baseball umpire for the Bettendorf Pleasant Valley Baseball League, SouthEast Little League, and the Iowa High School Athletic Association while also volunteering at All Saints Lutheran Church Food Pantry in Davenport Iowa. My family and I attend Bridge Cities Church where I am a part of their Youth Leadership team.
When I have free time, I enjoy playing ultimate football with my friends, video games with my siblings, and Dungeons and Dragons with family and friends. After high school, I plan to pursue a degree in Robotics Engineering.
Aspiration Statement: I hope to use my engineering degree to help solve the world’s problems and create safer environments for everyone.
Connor Eads, Muscatine High School
$2500 – Constellation Corporation
Connor Eads is a senior at Muscatine High School where he has maintained a weighted 4.34 GPA over the past four years. He is a member of The National Honor Society and is involved in many activities such as Band, Boy Scouts, Theatre, and Wrestling. Connor is also currently working part time as an engineer intern at HNI Corporation in Muscatine Iowa. In this internship he is able to use his engineering skills in a real-world setting. In Connor’s free time he likes to go camping, volunteering, and play games with friends. Connor plans to major in Mechanical Engineering at Iowa State University.
Aspirations: Connor hopes to use his engineering degree to obtain a job where he works to make products more efficient and safer for the environment.
Kaylee Johnson, Rock Falls High School
$2,500 Society of American Military Engineers
Kaylee Johnson is a senior at Rock Falls Township High School. She is currently ranked 3rd in her class and has a weighted GPA of 4.317. Kaylee has taken numerous AP classes throughout her high school career as well as dual enrollment classes at Sauk Valley Community College and the Morrison Institute of Technology. She is involved in multiple extracurriculars such as drama, band, and scholastic bowl. In her free time Kaylee enjoys programming and reading.
In the fall of 2025 Kaylee will be enrolled at the Illinois Institute of Technology pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering.
Aspirations: Using her mechanical engineering degree, Kaylee plans to improve society through technological innovation, as well as encourage and support young girls wishing to enter the STEM field.
Carter Cox, Pleasant Valley High School
$1,500 American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers
Carter is a senior at Pleasant Valley High School where I have a weighted GPA of 4.31 and an unweighted of 3.98. I have been in many honors and AP classes in high school, as well as being dual-enrolled in Scott Community College. I was also accepted into the National Honor Society. I participated in high school soccer for my first two years where I earned a varsity letter, and now I play tennis for the high school. I enjoy playing sports with my friends and love to stay active. If I’m not playing sports or doing school work, you will usually find me playing video games or watching sports as those are some of my favorite things to do in my free time. My family and I love to attend Iowa State football games and we try to go to as many as we can every year. Apart from all of that, I also spend time during the summer volunteering at World Relief where I get to teach refugee children basic English and other skills. After high school, I will be attending Iowa State University where I plan to get my degree in Agricultural Engineering.
Aspiration Statement:
I hope to use my degree in Agricultural Engineering to positively impact this aspect of society by developing new products to help crop yields and food sustainability.
Teghen Bell, Muscatine High School
$2,000 IEEE Iowa Illinois Section
Teghan Bell is a senior at Muscatine High School. She has taken Ap classes, PLTW classes, and has taken dual enrollment classes through Muscatine Community College. She has maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout high school, been on the college president’s list three semesters, and dean’s list one semester. Some of her academic awards and recognition from both college and high school include an academic letter, academic pin, National Honor Society, Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, National Society of High School Scholars, Tri-M Music Honor Society, and more. Throughout her time in high school, she has greatly been involved in music extracurriculars while also working a job whenever she did not have a rehearsal or performance. She has also spent three years as a section leader in the band program and spent a year and a half as a section leader in Orchestra. She also participated in the Wilton Trap Shooting program throughout middle and high school while placing in multiple meets and a couple of times at the annual state meet each year. Throughout all her years in school she has most loved STEM projects and experiments and found a home in pursuing her interests in engineering while in her career exploration class her freshman year.
Teghan will be attending Iowa State University this fall to major in Electrical Engineering and take their concurrent MBA program to have a minor in business.
Aspirations: Teghan hopes to work for a rural electric cooperative and eventually become CEO of that cooperative. She would also love to have a chance to work with the electrical grid and enhance its security and stability.
Megan Kramer, Central Dewitt High School
$1,000 Quad City Engineering and Science Council Community College
I have always enjoyed working on vehicles, last year I took diesel mechanics and fell in love with it more than I already was. This is the career path that I have wanted to do for years. I plan on opening my shop one day. I have always enjoyed working on cars and helping my stepfather make oil changes on vehicles he has had in the past. That was when I realized that this was what I wanted to do.
Aspiration statement- I hope to show people that I can do it no matter what the world throws at me. That I can succeed no matter what even if I want to give up. And I also want to be able to give back to people even if they don’t have anything to offer. The money doesn’t matter to me at all I just want to be able to do what I love.
Priya Suresh, Pleasant Valley High School
$2,500 Quad City Engineering and Science Council
Priya Suresh is a senior at Pleasant Valley High school with a 4.265 weighted GPA. Throughout her four years she has participated in many honors and AP courses while also participating in the arts in her school. Priya has participated in the Pleasant Valley Band, the school newspaper, the ethics bowl team, Pleasant Valley Girls Tennis, and is a part of national honors society. Outside of school Priya has volunteered for the Quad City foundation, Hand in Hand, and UnityPoint health. She works as an instructor at Mathnasium to tutor children. Priya has participated in dance for the last 13 years and has done art through the Figge art academy for 8 years where she first found her passion for innovation.
Priya plans to attend a currently undecided university to pursue a degree in chemical engineering and environmental sciences.
Aspiration: Priya hopes to major in chemical engineering with a focus in environmental sciences. Priya hopes to someday work towards creating more environmentally sustainable practices for agriculture to protect human health and the environment.
Rithwick Lakshmanan, Pleasant Valley High School
$2,500 Jeffrey Richland Memorial Scholarship
Rithwick Lakshmanan is a Pleasant Valley High School senior with a weighted GPA of 4.1 and a 32 ACT. He has a strong passion for robotics, engineering, and computer science. He has been involved in FIRST Robotics, participating in FIRST Lego League (FLL) for four years, FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) for four years, and FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) for one year. His team qualified for the World Championship in FTC, where they were Finalist Design Award winners in 2020.
At school, Rithwick is Vice President of the Computer Science Club and actively participates in FBLA, Model UN, Chess Club, Editing Club, and Aviation Club. He has taken numerous honors and AP classes throughout the years but his favorite class out of all of them is AP CSA. Beyond school, he is part of the Iowa STEM Advisory Board and works at Mathnasium, where he tutors students in Math.
This fall, Rithwick plans to major in Mechanical Engineering and minor in Computer Science.
Aspirations: Rithwick, after college, aims to start his own robotics company for space exploration, where he’ll develop advanced robotics for interplanetary missions.