Nearly 700 guests packed the ballroom, the most ever to attend the Gala, which raises money for student scholarships at The College of Idaho. Guests’ bids on auction items led to the second-highest donation total in the history of the event. The final count of $806,644 marked the second time that the Gala has raised over $800,000 for student scholarships.

“It's not about just preparing them for a job,” Haney Keith said. “It's more about preparing them to enter into society after they graduate and to be a valuable member of society, to be those problem solvers that we want to see.” 

The Ken Burns American Heritage Prize, in its own words, celebrates a distinguished and visionary individual whose achievements in the arts, education, literature/history, or science/conservation have advanced our collective understanding of the indomitable American spirit.

Haugen is currently a math teacher at Pinnacle High School in Phoenix, Arizona. She graduated from The College of Idaho with a degree in mathematics.

Kaya Evans '21 is one of 32 Americans to be named a Rhodes Scholar this year and becomes the eighth alum to win the oldest and most celebrated international fellowship award in the world.

Otero’s work has shown enough promise that she’s caught the attention of a national foundation that is trying to topple something considered among the top priorities in medicine.