Kearney High School junior Bradly Barton has been awarded a scholarship worth up to $50,000 from the KC Scholars organization.

KHS Counselors Janelle Veith and Erin McMains and Assistant Principal Daniel Miller showed up at Mr. Barton's Project Lead the Way Engineering class this morning to surprise him with the news that he was being given the scholarship.

"Bradly has put in a lot of work to earn this scholarship," Mrs. McMains said. "We're all proud of him, and we're very grateful to KC Scholars for this incredible display of support."

KC Scholars was founded in 2016 by a coalition of Kansas City-region activists with significant financial support from the Kauffman Foundation. Its primary goal is to help high school students from working-class families pay for and succeed in college.

Barton's scholarship includes $10,000 awarded annually for up to five years if he attends one of the 17 post-secondary colleges and universities that are part of the KC Scholars network. Barton will also have access to the program's scholar advocates and support resources like ACT prep, college planning, admissions applications and career exploration.

KPGZ News - Ray Weikal with the Kearney School District contributed to this story