{"id":51242,"date":"2026-05-28T12:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T16:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/?p=51242"},"modified":"2026-05-27T11:36:46","modified_gmt":"2026-05-27T15:36:46","slug":"vantage-career-center-honors-250-graduates-at-2026-senior-awards-ceremony","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/vantage-career-center-honors-250-graduates-at-2026-senior-awards-ceremony\/","title":{"rendered":"Vantage Career Center Honors 250 Graduates at 2026 Senior Awards Ceremony"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Caden Meyer Scholarship recipients: Bryceson Pease and Tyler Hankinson of PHS.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Van wert, Ohio – Family, friends, and representatives from Vantage Career Center\u2019s 13 associate school districts filled the Van Wert High School gymnasium on Monday, May 18, 2026, to celebrate the achievements of the Class of 2026 during the annual Senior Awards Ceremony. As the graduating class of Vantage Career Center\u2019s 50th Anniversary year, the 250 seniors were recognized for their hard work, dedication, and accomplishments throughout their educational journey. Highlights of the ceremony included Awards of Distinction, special recognitions, and an impressive $843,143 awarded in scholarships, marking a memorable milestone year and reflecting the bright futures ahead for this exceptional graduating class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Great Clips Scholarship recipient: Lyla Clem.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The evening reflected the heart of the Vantage experience\u2014celebrating growth, perseverance, and preparing students for life beyond the classroom. Student speaker Brooklyn King, an Early Childhood Education senior from Paulding, captured the spirit of the night in her address, reflecting on the impact Vantage had on her class and the future that lies ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Robert C. Stevens Scholarship recipient: Felicia Martz<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

“The foundation we\u2019ve built here will carry us forward, helping us make a difference wherever we go,” King shared. She also reminded her classmates that \u201cwe\u2019re not just graduates\u2014we\u2019re the future leaders, creators, caregivers, and change-makers.\u201d Her words reflected not only the journey of the Class of 2026, but also the legacy Vantage has built over the past 50 years, empowering students with the skills, confidence, and opportunities needed to succeed far beyond graduation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each year, one student from their career-technical program is selected to receive the prestigious \u201cAward of Distinction,\u201d recognizing exceptional leadership, academic excellence, skill mastery, and character. The 2026 recipients are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyler Gurwell (Auto Collision); Cora Meyer (Ag & Industrial Power); Taten Long (Auto Technologies); Alex Groch (Carpentry); Macie Pugh (Cosmetology); Annelise Price (Early Childhood Education); Brady Thomsen (Electricity); Jayci Blue (Medical Assistant);  Bela Fiedler (Health Technologies); Chase German (Industrial Mechanics); Xander Bartley (Network Systems); Luke Hoffman (Machining & Engineering Technologies); Careen Winans (Sports Exercise Therapy) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Award of Distinction recipient: Careen Winans.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Special industry-sponsored presentations added to the excitement. Kennedy Manufacturing honored two students with high-performance tool chests: Luke Ray (Paulding) received a Machinist\u2019s Rolling Tool Chest as the outstanding Precision Machining senior, and Chase German (Fort Jennings) received a Maintenance Rolling Tool Chest for excellence in Industrial Mechanics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Robert C. Stevens Scholarship recipient: Eric Reinhart.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Numerous scholarships were awarded to students who demonstrated dedication, perseverance, and outstanding program achievement:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Robert C. Stevens Scholarship \u2013 Brooklyn Stone (Fort Jennings) and Annabelle Hoffman (Delphos Jefferson); Van Wert Rotary Scholarship \u2013 Felicia Martz (Van Wert); Robert Brandt Scholarship \u2013 Eric Reinhart (Wayne Trace) presented by Vantage Superintendent Rick Turner; Great Clips Scholarship \u2013 Lyla Clem (Antwerp); Marcus Landin Memorial Tool Award \u2013 Rhettik Bowers (Continental); Caden Meyer Scholarship \u2013 Bryson Pease (Paulding) and Tyler Hankinson (Paulding); Wyatt E. Davis Memorial Award \u2013 Careen Winans (Wayne Trace); Zachary J. Wood Scholarship \u2013 Landon Nagel  (Van Wert); Robbie Seffernick Memorial Award (for a junior Welding student) \u2013 Oliver Kahle (Kalida) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, 38 students were honored with National Technical Honor Society cords, reflecting their academic excellence and leadership, while five students celebrated a remarkable achievement of perfect attendance throughout the school year, including Hannah Vetter of Van Wert who had perfect attendance for the last two years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The evening concluded with recognition of every student who received scholarships during their time at Vantage, totaling an astounding $843,143 awarded to support students\u2019 post-secondary goals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the 250 members of the Class of 2026 begin the next chapter of their journeys through careers, college programs, apprenticeships, and military service, they leave Vantage equipped with the hands-on skills, knowledge, and experiences needed to succeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 As the graduating class of Vantage Career Center\u2019s 50th Anniversary year, they carry forward a legacy of excellence while representing the future of skilled professionals and leaders in their communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Congratulations to the Vantage Career Center Class of 2026 on this remarkable accomplishment and all that lies ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Senior Academic Awards were presented to: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mrs. Webster\u2019s Functional English \u2013 Dominik Johnson; Mr. Unverferth\u2019s US Military History \u2013 Cole English; Mr. Unverferth\u2019s Financial Literarcy and Sports History \u2013 Dylan Schaefer; Mr. Putthoff\u2019s Algerbra II part 2 \u2013 Maddisyn Pescosoldo; Ms. Oechsle\u2019s Financial Literacy \u2013 Mavericj Grant; Ms. Oechsle\u2019s Sociology \u2013 Henry \u201cHank\u201d Walpole; Mrs. Yenser-Hammon’s English IV \u2013 Zaria Harter; Mr. McConahay\u2019s English 12 \u2013 Cole English; Mrs. Hortsman\u2019s Advanced Quantitative Reasoning   – Griffin Kosch; Mr. Joyce\u2019s Drones Part 107 \u2013 Corbin Sargent; Mrs. Reinhart\u2019s English IV \u2013 Cole Miller; Mrs. Reinhart\u2019s English IV \u2013 Delana Noggle; Mrs. Kistler\u2019s Math-Geometry \u2013 Audrey Dougal; Mrs. Drerup\u2019s Material Science \u2013 Zachary Hohlbein; Mrs. Evans\u2019 English 12 \u2013 Annelise Price <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Van wert, Ohio – Family, friends, and representatives from Vantage Career Center\u2019s 13 associate school districts filled the Van Wert<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":51243,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[6,7],"tags":[29092,17428,15835,29095,19789,29094,29093,13668,3180],"class_list":["post-51242","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","category-school","tag-bryceson-pease","tag-careen-winans","tag-eric-reinhart","tag-felicia-martz","tag-lyla-clem","tag-robert-c-stevens","tag-tyler-hankinson","tag-van-wert-ohio","tag-vantage-career-center"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Vantage-Bryson-Pease-Tyler-Hankinson.png?fit=666%2C594&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2YQd9-dku","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-04 14:22:25","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51242","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51242"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51242\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":51248,"href":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51242\/revisions\/51248"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/51243"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.westbendnews.net\/autonews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}