Four Owsley County students named to Rogers Explorers class

Four Owsley County students earned a place in a regional program that puts rising ninth-graders on a college campus, opens a window to STEAM careers and covers lodging, meals and program costs.

The students are Jorge Perez, Jinger Marshall, Erick McIntosh and Chaya Hudson. They were among 181 rising high school freshmen from Southern and Eastern Kentucky selected for the 2026 Rogers Explorers class, joined by four students from Lee County.

Rogers Explorers is a three-day, two-night leadership program run by The Center for Rural Development for eighth-graders in its 45-county service area. Students live and learn on a Kentucky college campus during the summer before ninth grade, with sessions centered on leadership, technology, math, science and community service. Center President and CEO Lonnie Lawson said the program is designed to give students stronger leadership skills, more exposure to STEAM fields and a first look at college life.

The 2026 program placed students at six universities: the University of Pikeville in Pikeville, Union Commonwealth University in Barbourville, Morehead State University in Morehead, the University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg, Lindsey Wilson University in Columbia and Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond. For Owsley County families, that matters because it puts students in direct contact with campuses and mentors they may later rely on as they make decisions about college, careers and service back home.

The Center was established in 1996 through the vision of U.S. Rep. Harold "Hal" Rogers and other leaders, and its archive shows the program has been running for years at a similar scale. In 2016, 182 students were selected for Rogers Explorers, nearly matching this year’s 181.

Students who want to apply for the next class must be eighth-graders living in the Center’s 45-county service area and go through the county-level application process. The Center says selection is based on the top application scores in that first round, and the number chosen depends on how many partner universities host the program in a given year. For 2026, applications were due Jan. 31 and acceptance letters were mailed by the end of March. Lodging, meals and program expenses are covered, with transportation the only cost left to families.