Lucille Barnes and Blaine Diesslin Scholarship

In September 2020, the Lucille Barnes and Blaine Diesslin Scholarship was established with the Winona State University Foundation. The scholarship will support and encourage students who are majoring in Secondary Mathematics Education.

Criteria
Each recipient must:
a. be an undergraduate student enrolled full-time and in good standing at Winona State University (minimum of 12 credits per semester, fall and spring)
b. be a Mathematics – Secondary Teaching major (grades 5-12) in their sophomore, junior or senior year, with preference for a female student
c. have a cumulative G.P.A. of 2.75 or higher
d. have financial need as determined by response to related application essay question(s).

Background and Motivation
Lucille and her husband, Blaine, are retired career educators with master’s degrees in Secondary Education. Lucille graduated from Winona State University with a major in Mathematics and went on to receive her Master of Science degree in the same field. Blaine is a graduate of Mankato State College. He taught junior-senior high school mathematics and physical sciences, and later taught physics, physical science, and computer science at Vermilion Community College.

Lucille writes: “I personally received an excellent education as a student at WSU earning my BS in 1961, which led to my rewarding 38-year career as a junior-senior high school mathematics teacher. During my career, I was also the only female math teacher in three of the four schools where I taught.

Throughout my career, I encouraged numerous students to study and earn degrees in Science, Technology, Education or Mathematics. Many of the young women were very effective volunteers as ‘after school’ peer mathematics tutors while in high school, then earned a STEM-related post-secondary degree.”

Lucille and Blaine made themselves available to their students for individual tutorial assistance outside of class-time and encouraged their students to do so, and to assist their classmates.