Lauren Stiefvater Receives Mother Jerome Schmitt Scholarship

Lauren Stiefvater '25 was awarded the Mother Jerome Schmitt Scholarship in which Stiefvater will receive full tuition for her senior year at Mount Marty University. The scholarship honors Mother Jerome Schmitt, the first president of Mount Marty, and is awarded to an incoming senior student who is pursuing an undergraduate degree with good academic standing, has completed at least one semester as a full-time student, and exemplifies the core values and Benedictine Hallmarks the university is built upon. 

“Honestly, this was a Holy Spirit driven moment,” said Stiefvater. She found herself in the chapel looking for inspiration for her essay when she began writing a letter to her high school self. “It’s a letter looking back at the person I was in high school to the person I am now, and it was the reflective time I needed to fully comprehend the impact Mount Marty has had on me. This was my way to express that.” 

During this reflective time, she contemplated her faith journey and the impact the Mount Marty community has had on her growth including the core values and Benedictine Hallmarks, campus ministry team, education professors and the Benedictine Leadership Institute trips. When asked how she plans to use the core values and Benedictine teachings after graduation, she simply responded, “They just became who I am.” She mentioned she is constantly surrounded by these virtues in the staff and faculty at Mount Marty. “They just radiate those values, and you start to pick up on that. They [the values] form yourself and the people you surround yourself with.” 

Stiefvater also recounted the empowerment and growth she experienced by joining Lumen Christi last summer which is a program through the Catholic Diocese of Sioux Falls where college students become missionaries and evangelize parish members and kids of all ages. “I just like walking with kids on their faith journey. And that journey is so cool and so real.” She especially loved watching the kids grow to realize their value and worthiness of love.

When her essay was finally finished, Stiefvater realized she was not the same woman she was when she first came to Mount Marty. She is proud of where and who she is and what she will do in the future to impact and inspire others. 

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ABOUT MOUNT MARTY UNIVERSITY

Founded in 1936 by the Benedictine Sisters of Sacred Heart Monastery, Mount Marty University is South Dakota's only Catholic institution of higher education. Located along the bluffs of the Missouri River in Yankton, with additional locations in Watertown and Sioux Falls, Mount Marty offers undergraduate and graduate degrees focusing on student and alumni success in high-demand fields such as health sciences, education, criminal justice, business, accounting, and more. A community of learners in the Benedictine tradition, Mount Marty emphasizes academic excellence and develops well-rounded students with intellectual competence, professional and personal skills and moral, spiritual and social values. To learn more, visit mountmarty.edu.