2020 Smart Girls Scholarship Winner

The Terra Brantley Foundation, Inc. is pleased to announce that Exaviona Roddy is attending Purdue University Fort Wayne (PFW) after being named the Foundation’s first recipient of the Smart Girls Scholarship. Roddy was awarded the scholarship in 2020. She started PFW in August 2021 and is proud to be a mastodon.

The Terra Brantley Foundation was founded in 2019 by former WANE15 TV news anchor Terra Brantley. It awards $15,000 annually to assist a young female member of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Fort Wayne in pursuing a college or university education.

”After partnering with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Fort Wayne on many projects over the years, I wanted to do something that would help youngsters in its Smart Girls program get to the next level,” says Terra Brantley, Founder and President of the Terra Brantley Foundation (TBF). “Providing a financial resource to help them attain a college education is fundamental in their socioeconomic development and evolution.”

Roddy, graduated from South Side High School. She was active on the Academic Team at South Side and was a member of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Fort Wayne where she excelled in the Smart Girls program, Girls Scouts, and was also a Junior Staff member. Roddy is excited about attending PFW. “I am majoring in Elementary Education,” said Roddy. “I want to be an elementary school teacher and hopefully open a school in the Midwest.”

The Terra Brantley Foundation, Inc. has partnered with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Fort Wayne, Sweetwater Sound, Parkview Health, Summit City Chevrolet, Heffner Foundation, LiUNA! Local 213 and Indiana Tech to provide an annual $15,000 Smart Girls Scholarship to a female high school student and member of the Smart Girls program ages 16 to 18, who will graduate from high school and pursue a college/university education and subsequent degree in Indiana.

“Exaviona is a great example of a young woman who is rising above her challenges and working to help others. After judging the applications, the TBF Board of Directors and I decided Exaviona best represents what the Boys & Girls Clubs of Fort Wayne is working to achieve by uplifting and empowering local youth,” says Brantley. “We were going to make the announcement at the Smart Girls/Brilliant Women that is usually held in November, but the event was canceled due to the pandemic.”

The Boys & Girls Clubs of Fort Wayne Smart Girls program helps school age girls develop and adopt a healthy attitude and lifestyle, sustain a positive self-concept, sound decision-making skills and mentor relationships. The program focuses on health, fitness, education and self-esteem enhancement. The Smart Girls program offers the tools to assist our female Club members reach their full potential as productive, caring and responsible women.

“We are extremely grateful to the Terra Brantley Foundation, Inc. for providing this life changing opportunity to one of our Smart Girl club members“, says Joe Jordan, President & CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Fort Wayne. “Terra Brantley and the generosity of the Foundation is a superb example of making a significant impact and investing in our children and our future leaders.”