Price plays a huge role in making the decision to attend college. When thinking about college, scholarships are tremendous to help reduce the cost. The Distinguished Young Women program (DYW) is a non-profit organization that provides scholarship opportunities for all high school senior girls. Some of the surrounding counties involved include Cass, Fulton, Pulaski, and Miami County. DYW is also a statewide competition, so if someone wins their county, then they move on to the state competition.
Distinguished Young Women was a program that began in 1958, designed to provide young women the opportunity and support needed to succeed before college or after high school, for those not attending college. DYW teaches girls many valuable life skills. Lewis Cass senior, Alexis Alford, who is participating in the program this year, stated, “DYW has taught me how to speak in front of others better and present myself.” Some skills that participants learn throughout this program include interviewing, public speaking, self-confidence, modeling, and so much more. Fellow senior, Alivya Strong stated, “I have met a variety of different people with their own unique stories, and I love to meet new people, so DYW helped me do that, and it has truly meant so much to me.”
The DYW program for Cass County is held at Caston High School. Women attend workshops at Caston and meet around twice a month on Sundays. In the program, participants compete in the categories of interview (25%), scholastic (25%), self-expression (15%), talent (20%), and fitness (15%). At each of the workshops, young ladies learn more about each of these categories. According to Strong, “My favorite category is self-expression because I love answering the meaningful questions they ask and the walk we have to do.”
The head chairman of this wonderful program for Fulton, Pulaski, and Cass County is Michaela Slisher. Michaela started as a volunteer for the Class of 1985 program. She won the title of DYW Cass County in 1984. Also, Michaela helped with the class of 1987, 1988, and 1989 Fulton County program. Then, Slisher had connections with the Fulton County head chairman, which allowed her to become a chairman for Fulton County. Slisher has now been helping the DYW program for over 30 years.
Juniors can apply for this program by going to the Distinguished Young Women (https://www.distinguishedyw.org/) and applying. Announcements about the program begin to come out in May, and that is when the site is open to juniors who will be incoming seniors. After applying, students will receive an email back from Michaela Slisher. If women decide to participate in the program, they will then attend the workshop series at Caston. Based upon my personal experience, I would definitely recommend this organization to others. Alexis Alford stated, “I think it depends on the girl because it is a lot of time and effort.” Alford also mentioned, “If someone is looking for ways to improve their speaking skills and looking for interview skills, then this is a good opportunity, but it can become a lot, so if someone already has a lot going on, then this might not be the best thing to do.”
Overall, I would highly recommend the DYW program to girls because of the many valuable life skills learned and the opportunities to meet new people. The Cass County DYW program is this Saturday, November 22, at 2 pm at Caston High School. Come out and support the seniors here at Lewis Cass participating in this year’s DYW, including Liberty Preston, Alexis Alford, and Alivya Strong! Who will be the next Distinguished Young Women of Cass County 2026?
