Madison Masters, a Sapulpa High School graduate, is starting classes at Oklahoma State University with a little more security than she had just a few weeks ago.
The 2021 graduate was on her way to college for construction engineering, but of course, college is an expensive endeavor. Though she’d made good grades and worked hard, Madison and her mother still weren’t sure how to make it all work. When the news came that she’d been selected, she could hardly believe it.
“Mom was in the kitchen, and I just walked in and said, ‘I just won! I won $5,000 for college!’” she said in an interview with Sapulpa Times. Madison said that she’d only been able to procure another $500 in scholarships, and wasn’t sure how she’d float the remainder, outside of working her way through college.
Kendra McColloch, Director of the Make Sense Foundation, said that the grant went to the right person. The application process includes being graded on ACT score, references, and financial need, as well as a written essay and a video presentation. Out of more than 60 applicants, McColloch said that Madison stood out for her involvement in the community.
“We saw that she was involved in National Honor Society, Key Club, and the Academic Team,” she said. “It was exactly what we were looking for as we were making the decisions on who to give out these scholarships to.”
McColloch said she particularly liked Madison’s essay, calling it “very well-written.” The essay, titled “More Than a Bird Specialist,” talked about how her experience working at restaurant Raising Cane’s made her realize her own natural potential to be a leader.
In her essay, Madison recounts her experiences with her crew at the restaurant, molding them into a family, something she admits that she doesn’t have a lot of experience with. “I have never been close with my family,” she says. “I live with my mom and have only met my dad a few times. I have a brother, but he’s seventeen years older, so we’re not close.” Because she didn’t have a family to visit during the holidays, she worked the holiday shifts at Raising Cane’s. “I know this will sound cheesy, but my crew felt like an actual family. They gave me a family when I did not know what having one was like.”
Her essay shines a light on why she chose construction engineering as her major in college. She made the choice after watching an Oklahoma City-based construction crew design and create a homeless shelter that was almost completely self-sustaining, without having the hallmarks of being a shelter. She says that someday, she hopes to turn that passion for the underserved to her hometown, and make her own mark on Sapulpa. Her head is already brimming with ideas; she recognizes the migration back to urban centers but says that Sapulpa falls short in a big way—kids. “We need something kid-friendly to do downtown,” she says.
Give her a few years, and hopefully, we’ll see Madison Masters back in Sapulpa, helping to make those dreams a reality in a way that we all can enjoy.
