Tongue River Valley Scholarship Fund
ABOUT US
Scholarship Committee
Jay McGinnis
Jay has lived and worked in Sheridan County for the past 50 years. The opportunity to give back through the Tongue River Valley Scholarship Fund directly reflects his interest in education and youth.
Jay and his wife, Sara, congratulate the seniors of Tongue River High School and look forward to further celebrating their successes in life.
Sara McGinnis
Sara spent 29 years as an educator in Sheridan County School District 1 and currently serves as an education consultant to other districts.
The Tongue River Valley Scholarship program is important to Sara because she was a first-generation college graduate. She is grateful to the people who recognized her potential before she saw it in herself and hopes to provide the same kind of inspiration to the students at Tongue River High School.
Tammy Aksamit
Tammy Aksamit moved from Billings, MT to Ranchester when she was 9. She graduated from Tongue River High School in 1987. She believes that TRHS gave her the educational foundation required to complete her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing. She believes that all students should have the opportunity to continue their education after high school, whether that means attending a university or learning a trade.
She is married to Allen (also a 1987 TRHS graduate) and they have 3 children: Eryn (TRHS class of 2015), Kal (TRHS class of 2020), and Paxten (TRHS class of 2025). She is proud of the fact that they are 3rd generation graduates from TRHS. She is currently employed at Sheridan Memorial Hospital as a clinical nurse educator.
Rob Johnson
Rob joined the Tongue River Scholarship Fund Board upon its creation in September of 2017. He was raised in Dayton and is a 2008 graduate of Tongue River High School. He now lives and works in Sheridan with his wife, Emma, and their two sons Michael and Sammy.
Rob feels that being involved with the Tongue River Valley Scholarship Fund is a great way to give back to a community that helped shape him into the person he is today, and he loves the fact that he gets a chance to impact the lives and futures of Tongue River students. The most rewarding experience of his involvement has come through interviewing and speaking to the candidates and scholarship awardees. He's continually impressed with the quality of people the Tongue River Valley produces year after year, and he appreciates the opportunity to play a small part in their future successes.
Nancy Johnston
Nancy was born & raised on the family ranch in Parkman, WY and is a TR alumni. Nancy attended Sheridan College, receiving an associate degree in Ag Business. Nancy is married to her high school sweetheart, John. They have 2 wonderful adult kids and one precious granddaughter.
Nancy works at Tongue River Valley Community Center as the Marketing & Membership Coordinator. When not at work, Nancy enjoys spending time on the family ranch and in the mountains with her family. Nancy is excited for this opportunity to serve on the TRVSF Committee to help empower students of Tongue River Valley.
Jeff jones
Jeff Jones has spent over 30 years in Education and his professional experiences are extensive. He is currently the Sheridan County School District #1 Superintendent. He earned undergraduate degrees from Rocky Mountain College in Billings, Montana. Later in his career, he completed his M.A. in Counseling and Human Development and then an Ed.S. in Educational Administration. In 2022, he earned his doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of Wyoming.
Dr. Jones experienced tremendous support from his local community after graduating high school and he looks forward to showing that same type of support to the youth in this valley.
Erin Kilbride
Erin is the Executive Director of the Whitney Benefits Foundation. She is originally from Casper, Wyoming. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Wyoming and her Masters from the University of South Dakota. She has lived in the Tongue River Valley for the past 17 years with her husband and two boys. Erin and Pete moved to the Tongue River Valley to enjoy the Bighorn Mountains and raise their boys in a place with strong values and exceptional schools.
Erin has a passion to build community and is a part of the TRV Scholarship Fund to help promote stewardship and integrity and empower Tongue River students to become our leaders of tomorrow.
Amber robbins
Amber (Wallace) Robbins grew up in the Tongue River valley and graduated from TRHS in 1996. She attended the University of Wyoming and then the University of Washington School of Medicine via the WWAMI program. She completed her residency in Dermatology at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, and has been operating her busy dermatology practice, Robbins Dermatology PC in Sheridan since 2008.
Amber is proud of all of the Tongue River High School graduates and especially so of her daughter, Zia (Class of 2022). She is excited to see the TRVSF recipients succeed in their educations and futures.
Jeremy Scott
Jeremy grew up in Dayton and is a ‘98 Tongue River graduate. He spent 15 years outside of Wyoming (12 of those outside of the US), and returned in 2015 with his wife. He and Ruby now have 3 young sons who are or will be attending TR. Go Eagles!
Jeremy is involved in various businesses locally and internationally and is proud to be a successful/lucky entrepreneur. He is equally proud to assist in recognizing and rewarding Tongue River students for their talent, hard work, and services to the TR valley.
Michelle Forster
Michelle is a 1998 TRHS graduate and holds a degree in Vocal Performance from the University of Northwestern in St. Paul, MN. During the 20 years away from her hometown, she worked as a professional opera singer, title insurance sales professional and craft beer advocate.
Michelle moved back to WY in 2018 to become the first Executive Director of the Wyoming Craft Brewers Guild where she advocated for and worked with breweries all over the state. Michelle is now the Director of Sales at Black Tooth Brewing Co. in Sheridan but still finds plenty of time for performing throughout Wyoming. She's thrilled to be involved in the work of TRVSF and helping students from her beloved hometown achieve their goals and aspirations, no matter how far away or close to home it may take them.
Kristen Masters
Kristen (Nielsen) Masters is an ‘09 graduate of TRHS and earned degrees in Art and English from the University of Wyoming. She lives in Dayton with her husband, Jake (TRHS ‘08), and son, Mac.
Kristen’s professional experience includes creative and marketing roles in agency, in-house, and freelance settings. Presently, she runs her own design business full-time while also keeping close to her passion for athletics and mentorship as head coach of volleyball at TRHS.
Kristen still experiences the presence of support and encouragement from members of the community long after her time being directly involved in activities, athletics, and clubs as a student, and is grateful for the opportunity to return the same support for future graduates of TRHS.