Three college students from parishes in the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois were among those who shared in more than $2,800 in the Father Yunker Student Assistance Fund for the current academic year.

Diocesan recipients of the scholarships include Kourtney A. Baker, a student at Murray State University in Murray, Ky., the daughter of Donna and Greg Baker of St. Aloysius Parish in Springfield; Matthew S. Banaitis, who attends Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington and is the son of Karen and Joseph Banaitis of St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Chatham; and Austin G. Dierkes, who attends the University of Alabama and is the son of Kathleen and Alec Dierkes of Chatham and also members of St. Joseph the Worker Parish.

Scholarship recipients must be of Lithuanian ancestry, be an active member of the Catholic Church and currently enrolled in an accredited college or university.

The Father Yunker Lithuanian Student Assistance Fund was established through the generosity of Father Stanley O. Yunker who, upon his death, designated a portion of his estate to start a trust to fund college scholarships for children of Lithuanian descent. Students can apply for this scholarship during each of the first four years of college and is based in-part on the student's financial need and other pertinent criteria.

This year's awards were recently announced by Father John Nolan, dean of the Springfield deanery and pastor, Church of the Little Flower and Jean Johnson, diocesan superintedent of Catholic Schools, who serve on the Foundation for the People which administers the Father Yunker Student Assistance Fund.