Donor: Koeden Friendly
Available to: Miss Texas' Teen delegates
Scholarship Amount: $500
Application Deadline: June 1, 2026
Scholarship Qualifications & About:
The Koeden Friendly Visionary Scholarship is a $500 award that will be given to a Miss Texas' Teen contestant who demonstrates inclusion, empathy, and intentional action toward building spaces where everyone feels seen, valued, and supported. Koeden is a seven-year-old boy who loves music, dancing, and blowing bubbles. He also has autism. It’s a part of who he is, but it’s never limited who he can become. Koeden's older sister, Kami Tielke, Miss Coppell's Teen, advocates for those with autism and brings education and awareness to everyone about the importance of making our world a more inclusive place.
Applicants should reflect the heart of Koeden’s story by leading with kindness, embracing differences, and taking meaningful steps to include others. The recipient will be someone who not only believes in inclusion but lives it, using her voice and actions to inspire change. This scholarship honors young leaders who know that even small acts of acceptance can make a lasting impact.
Application Requirements
Koeden Friendly was created to celebrate inclusion, kindness, and the belief that every individual deserves to feel seen, valued, and accepted for who they are.
In a one-page essay, describe a time when you chose to include someone who felt left out. Explain what you did, the impact it had on that individual and your community, and how the experience shaped your understanding of true inclusion.
In addition, applicants must submit a video posted to their titleholder Instagram account and add @koedenfriendly as a collaborator. In your video, respond to the following prompt: If you had the chance to speak to a young boy with autism who sees the world a little differently, what would you want him to know about his worth, his future, and his uniqueness? Please share this video via a public link in the submission box below.
Upload an essay (no more than one page) in PDF format via the submission button below.
Please submit your social media post via a public link to your post in the submission box below.