LTC Announces Student Award Winners

Lincoln Trail College announced the winners of this year’s student awards. Abbey McCord was awarded the Joseph C. Piland Excellence in Scholarship Award. Mallory Mundy was awarded the J. Rod Harmon Excellence in Service Award and Winter Harmsen was awarded the Bev L. Turkal Excellence in Leadership Award.

The Piland Award is given to a full-time Lincoln Trail College student who has demonstrated outstanding academic merit and sustained excellence in the classroom. The award is given to honor Joseph C. Piland who was the first President of Lincoln Trail College. His vision and passion for education were instrumental in the development of a comprehensive community college for Crawford County. 

McCord was recognized for her 4.0-grade point average, but also for her continued dedication and passion for Lincoln Trail College. McCord has been active with TRIO, Phi Theta Kappa, and Student Senate. She was named to Phi Theta Kappa’s All-Academic State Team. McCord has also volunteered numerous times to talk with prospective students about her experiences at LTC.

The Harmon Award is given to a full-time Lincoln Trail College student who has demonstrated outstanding service to the college or the community. Rod Harmon served as a faculty member at Lincoln Trail College for 27 years and has been the Executive Director of the Lincoln Trail College Foundation since 2005. He is well known for his rich sense of humor, dedication to his wife Diana, and commitment to creating opportunities for all residents of Crawford County to have access to a high-quality education.

Mundy was recognized for her leadership and service to Lincoln Trail College. Her passion and work ethic embody what it means to be a Statesman. She regularly shares her experiences at LTC with prospective students. She was elected as the new president of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society and will be helping with this summer’s College For Kids program.

The Turkal Award is given to a full-time Lincoln Trail College student who has shown great leadership qualities and skills. This award is given to honor Bev L. Turkal, a true leader in education, whose passion was to make a difference and change the lives of children, teens, adults, and lifelong learners. Bev believed to be a strong leader one must Live Life, Care and Show Empathy, must have High Energy, and be Competitive to Accomplish the Goals set to Make Things Happen! 

Over the last two years, Harmsen has fully immersed herself in all things Lincoln Trail College. She has served as the president of Student Senate and Phi Theta Kappa and was also a captain of the Women’s Soccer team. She’s helped organize numerous on-campus activities and helped organize the LTCares Food Pantry and set up an after-business hours computer lab for student-athletes. Harmsen has also been very active in helping recruiting efforts for LTC. In her two years, she’s carried a heavy academic load and also worked multiple jobs.

The three awards are given annually, and students are nominated by faculty and staff members. A committee selects the recipients of the awards.