Nathan Schroeder recently was awarded the Robert H. Leonard Service to Humanity Award, an award only given to one student per high school throughout Knox County. He was nominated by April Shoults, English teacher at Karns high school, and Brittney Carneal, counselor at Karns High School. 

To get this reward, the student must show exceeding levels of achievement and perseverance in their academic career. Schroader worked hard over his high school career, putting in the initiative whenever possible. 

“Being class president, JROTC and first sergeant, very dedicated to my community, I serve as part of the Knox County School Board’s Student Advisory Council, we make decisions and come up with solutions for certain problems in the county, it’s just an aspect of being apart of many different clubs throughout high school” said Schroader.

Earning this reward has been a challenge for Schroader. He’s had to go through thick and thin through his high school career, and this award is an example of all that diligent service. 

“I feel honored, county wide, that I was the only high schooler to get this in my school.” said Schroader. In a county with nearly 60,000 students and a school of 1685 students, he shined in a sea of competition and still came out on top.

“I’ve worked hard to make Karns more inclusive, and foster an environment of acceptance and success, it paid off.” It truly shows how motivated he is to make KHS a better place for all types of people.

The award is having a big impact on Schroader, too. 

“It shows me to continue to do what you do, even in the face of adversity, you can always make a difference” said Schroader. He really goes above and beyond, even faced with many challenges over his academic career, Schroader continues to strive to be a model member of the community.

“When I was up there on stage being compared to other people it was a lot, the people up there had a lot going on and I didn’t know who was going to win.” Schroeder said. The entire event was very stressful to him, but he ended up coming up on top. His story is incredibly admirable, and he is a role model for the entire Karns community.