Hope Adelson
By Alan Schmadtke
DALLAS — Hope Adelson, a senior at Boone High School in
Orlando, Fla., is the 29th winner of the Volney Meece Scholarship,
a multi-year award annually by the Football Writers Association of
America.
Hope, 17, is the daughter of FWAA member Andrea Adelson, who
covers the ACC for ESPN, and Eric Adelson, a journalism
professor at UCF and a former writer for ESPN The Magazine
and Yahoo Sports.
The FWAA gives the scholarship each year in the name of the
late Volney Meece, the FWAA’s executive director for 22 years
and the organization’s 1971 president.
The scholarship comes with a four-year annual grant of $1,000.
The FWAA awards it to the child of an FWAA member or College
Sports Communicator who is already in college or ready to start
college. Student FWAA members are also eligible for the grant.
Hope is a straight-A student with a weighted GPA of 5.177 (out of
6). She is an Advanced Placement Scholar with Distinction, a
member of the National Honor Society and in subject-specific
National Honor Societies for English, math, science and social
studies. She tutors other students in AP Chemistry and AP World
History.
Her passion for history has her on a path to major this fall in
political science at Barnard College in New York City.
“As I took at these AP classes, I realized I am just so much more
interested in the social sciences,” she said. “I feel like I’m good at
analyzing things, connecting multiple ideas together to try and
think of a solution for a problem. I see that as kind of a puzzle,
and I really like puzzles.”
Hope is the second Meece winner from Florida. Kaylynn Monroe
of Winter Park, Fla., won 20 years ago.
Hope’s academic achievements are matched only by her litany of
extracurricular activities, which include being a superior-rated
viola soloist by the Florida Orchestra Association, a campaign co-
director for The Jewish Youth Climate Movement, vice-chair of the
Florida High School Democrats.
In addition, she teaches other students how to play string
instruments. By the time she graduates in May, she will have
logged more than 500 hours of volunteer work.
“I’m not going to be a music major, but I definitely want to play the
viola for fun,” Hope said. “Columbia [University] has a symphony
orchestra that I can audition for, so I definitely want to do that.”
Winners of the Volney Meece Scholarship
1997 Brett Goering Topeka, Kan.
1998 Kelly Brooks Denver, Colo.
1999 James Butz Schaumberg, Ill.
2000 Sara Barnhart Atlanta, Ga.
2001 Patrick Davis Coventry, Conn.
2002 Jacqueline O’Toole Gaithersburg, Md.
2003 Garrett Holtz Denver, Colo.
2004 Katie Hersom Oklahoma City, Okla.
2005 Katie Wieberg Lawson, Mo.
2006 Kaylynn Monroe Winter Park, Fla.
2007 Nate Kerkhoff Overland Park, Kan.
2008 Jack Caywood Lawrence, Kan.
2009 Haley Dodd Overland Park, Kan.
2010 Donald Hunt Philadelphia, Pa.
2011 Alaina Martens Papillion, Neb.
2012 Emily Alford Tupelo, Miss.
2013 Sarah Helsley Edmond, Okla.
2014 Robert Abramson Palos Verde, Calif.
2015 Danielle Hoover Tulsa, Okla.
2016 Dolen Helwagen Pataskala, Ohio
2017 Elizabeth Schroeder Norman, Okla.
2018 Mallory Rosetta Baton Rouge, La.
2019 Alexandra Haley Hamilton, N.J.
2020 Sarah Shatel, Omaha, Neb.
2021 Jacob Weiszer, Athens, Ga.
2022 Kate Shatel, Omaha, Neb.
2023 Cade Huffman, Auburn, Wash.
2024 Alyssa Weiszer, Athens, Ga.
2025 Hope Adelson, Orlando, Fla.
Founded in 1941, the Football Writers Association of America consists of journalists, broadcasters, publicists, photographers and key executives in all areas of college football. The FWAA works to govern media access and game-day operations while presenting awards and honors, including an annual FWAA All-America Team. For more information about the FWAA and its program and initiatives, contact Executive Director Steve Richardson at 214-870-6516 or tiger@fwaa.com.
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