Lauren and Ana Textor are no strangers to hard work. As high school students, both worked nearly full-time while attending Piper High School in Kansas City, Kansas. These days, both still work just as hard, but thanks to a scholarship from KC Scholars and UMKC, they are focusing their efforts on their education.
Both sisters received a scholarship worth $10,000 per year, which covers their tuition at UMKC. Lauren, the elder sister, got her award in 2018, with Ana receiving the same award in 2019.
“In high school I was working so much and taking AP classes because I was always worried about how I was going to afford college. I wasn’t really taking care of myself,” said Ana. “Since I have tuition taken care of, it’s allowed me to slow down a lot, which has been really nice.”
She now majors in sociology and environmental studies with a minor in anthropology. She is involved in the Peer Academic Leadership (PALS) program, Honors Program and First Gen Roos.
In addition to her courses and extracurricular activities, Ana also conducted independent study. Ana said her scholarship has allowed her to spend more time with her friends and family and focus on her academics.
“My grades have been a lot better than they were in high school, and it’s been a lot less stressful,” said Ana. “I feel like I’m able to enjoy classes more because I’m not just rushing through assignments. I can actually absorb the information.”
Lauren is a junior majoring in English with a minor in sociology. She is the co-president for the UMKC chapter of Her Campus, a national online women’s publication for college students. She is also a residential assistant, a First Gen Roo student mentor and an Honors Program student.
This year her undergraduate research, which focused on art programs in prisons, was featured in the UMKC undergraduate research magazine Lucerna. She is also currently conducting research on the first lesbian press in the United States, which was started in Kansas City.
“I think if I had to work almost full-time hours, like I did in high school, I would not have been able to do as much as I have been here. I definitely don’t think I would have gotten into undergraduate research,” said Lauren. “My research on art programs took me a year and a half, so I wouldn’t have been able to do that intensive of a study if I had to worry about paying my entire way through school.”
Having shared nearly everything with her younger sisters for most of her life, Lauren is the first to admit that, initially, she was not eager to share a campus with one, but both sisters say they’ve grown closer in college.
“I definitely think it’s given us a better relationship than we would have had otherwise,” said Ana.