Gone, but not forgotten.

An on-campus group aims to sculpt a lasting legacy for a fallen student in the form of a memorial scholarship.

Aptly named the “Emmalee Jacobs Memorial Scholarship,” it stands in memory of the student whose life was lost in a hit-and-run accident in December for not only the Jacobs family and close friends but also generations of future ISU students.

Inspired by Jacob’s outward personality and passion for learning, the Collegiate Women in Business, a student organization that empowers young women in their pursuit for future careers and offers educational opportunities for the College of Business, formed the basis for what would become the current project.

Created as an endowed scholarship that strives to raise $25,000 in funding, the team sees this format as the best way to retain Jacob’s memory.

Sarah Olson, president of Collegiate Women in Business and graduate student in accounting, said the endowed scholarship — which means it essentially lasts forever — was set at a $25,000 limit by the ISU Foundation.

“We hope this will help her legacy live on,” Olson said. ”Our goal for all of the recipients in the future is to write a thank you letter to Emmalee’s parents. Even though we are raising the funds, they are the ones who brought her into this world and raised her to be the girl she is.”

Though championed by the entire organization, the concept was created by a sole member within the club who also was a close friend to Jacobs: Megan Euchner, freshman in accounting.

“This was her brainchild,” Olson said. “She said [to me], ‘I’d like to do something, but what can we do?’ So we sat down and discussed the scholarship. Even though others worked on the project, this is [Euchner]’s idea.”

Euchner began as classmates with Jacobs in a handful of courses, but over the course of a semester, grew to become closer friends and eventually decided to room with each other during the 2016 fall semester.

“I was always jealous because she was so smart,” Euchner said. “She’s kindhearted and willing to help. Honestly, we sometimes wouldn’t pay attention in class and just talk because of how funny she was. She’s the type of person anyone would just be able to talk to.”

It was this relationship that caused doubt when hearing about her passing.

“I was asleep when I heard the news of what had happened and I was devastated, even though I couldn’t believe what had happened,” Euchner said. “I was a bit suspicious because we were going to the same test together and never heard anything back from her, so I knew something was off.”

Upon hearing the news, Euchner said she wanted to make a difference for incoming students, citing Jacobs’ kindness and friendly demeanor as a catalyst for proposing the scholarship.

“I wanted to create the scholarship to help remember her, somewhat in the way she was able to help me and the experiences I had with her,” Euchner said. ”I learned a lot from her in classes as she was always willing to help. I just wanted someone else to have a future and be helped by something that she had done.”

Described by Olson and Euchner as “a kind-hearted genius,” her father Brad Jacobs sees the funds as an embodiment of his daughter’s commitment to staying humble in the face of success.

“Emmalee was very independent,” Brad Jacobs said. “She always wanted to give everything her best, and we were lucky that she was very intelligent. We saw her grow in her willingness to help students with questions, but she was also very humble with her success in school. I think she was proud of her hard work and her accomplishments, and we were so proud to see her grow into such a lovely woman.”

Hearing the news of the memorial scholarship left an impact on the Jacobs family, one they hope will transfer to ISU students in both academics and safety.

“We’re very touched that these young people want to do this,” Brad Jacobs said. “We’re excited about this and hope it’s successful and reach their goal. Hopefully people will always know something about Emmalee and raise awareness on being a better driver and pedestrian safety.”

The Collegiate Women in Business hope to reach their goal of $25,000 by the end of May 31. As of Tuesday, the campaign had raised about $1,900, but the organization hopes the funds will be met through social media awareness.

“The scholarship is being aimed at freshmen in the College of Business, and we don’t quite know how much we will get for money,” Euchner said. “It depends on how much we fundraise, but it will be for young women in business like Emmalee.” 

Though Emmalee was never a part of the organization, she was a hopeful future member whose enthusiasm spread to the team.

“Emmalee was not actually a member at the time, but however was planning on joining this semester,” Olson said. “We heard about how excited she was to join and be a part of the program that we wanted to make it possible for someone else to be the same way if they were financially struggling to go to college.”

Here’s a link to the scholarship fund: https://fundisu.foundation.iastate.edu/project/1962