KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Sumner Academy graduate Jaleon Brown had her college playbook set, but this was the ultimate audible.
“Thinking I won out of that many kids is crazy to me," Brown said.
Brown spent her senior year applying for college scholarships and was able to score the Len Dawson Scholarship.
“The ambassador comes to me and he’s like, he hands me this football and he says, 'congratulations, you’re the winner of the Len Dawson scholarship,' and I was like 'hold on take a few steps back, what just happened,'" Brown said.
The surprise came during a tour of GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
This year marks the 45th year that the $3,000 scholarship has been awarded to a graduating senior in the Kansas City area.
“That scholarship is definitely going to be helping me with tuition, every penny counts, so i’m very grateful for that scholarship opportunity," Brown said.
Brown will begin her freshman year at Western Kentucky University where she plans to major in English for secondary education with a minor in performing arts.
“Teaching runs really big in my family, my moms a teacher, my mom’s mom was was teacher, my mom’s mom’s mom was a teacher, so it’s something that definitely runs in my blood," Brown said.
In college, Brown will also continue with her passion for competitive speech and debate, but her playbook doesn't end there. She's already writing up routes she plans to take after college.
“One of my biggest goals in life is to have a non-profit program and it’s for performing arts for kids in the inner-city as a way to sort of escape some of the hardships in the world and a way for kids to really express themselves, because expressing yourself is really important I believe," Brown said.
Graduating seniors from across the metro area can apply for the Len Dawson Scholarship each year.
