Recently, on Sept.11, Hays High School seniors had the opportunity to take the Dane G. Hansen scholarship test. This test is the first step towards students being able to earn scholarships, ranging from $1,000 at the minimum to $6,000 at the higher end.

Dane G. Hansen was born in Logan, Kan., in 1833, and when he was in his 30s, he founded an oil business that would transform him from a small local leader to a successful businessman and respected philanthropist who started the Dane G. Hansen Foundation that provides the scholarships.

Senior Brett Dreher was one of the students who took the scholarship qualifying test at the Rose Garden Banquet Hall.

“We had to turn in our resumes first, then we took a bus to the place where I went to a wedding five years ago, then we started the test,” Dreher said.

The contents of the test included five subjects, including English, fine arts, history, math and science, then included two essays, which were an autobiography and an essay that provided an issue to which the students had to develop a solution.

“I thought I did fine,” Dreher said. “I definitely bombed the math portion, and my autobiography was bad, but I still hope I get the interview.”

The test results will be returned to the students sometime in December, then those who qualified will proceed to the interview stage in the scholarship process.

25cstutterheim@usd489.com