Diabetes Scholars Foundation Announces 2016 Scholarship Recipients

For fifth year in a row, Lilly Diabetes helps send standout students to college

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Jun 23, 2016, 10:00 ET

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Diabetes Scholars Foundation. (PRNewsFoto/Eli Lilly and Company)

PARK RIDGE, Ill. and INDIANAPOLIS, June 23, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- If the caliber of students receiving a Lilly Diabetes Tomorrow's Leaders Scholarship is any indication, the future is in good hands. The 2016 scholarship winners, announced today online at www.diabetesscholars.org by the Diabetes Scholars Foundation (Foundation), refused to let type 1 diabetes stand in the way of academic and community service excellence.

Lilly Diabetes has supported the Foundation's scholarship program since 2012, and continues to advocate for people with diabetes. In the last five years, 84 students with type 1 diabetes have been awarded a Lilly Diabetes Tomorrow's Leaders Scholarship. This year, the company contributed $100,000 to the Foundation to help another 21 deserving students pursue their goals as they enter adulthood.

"We are honored to partner with Lilly Diabetes. This is a wonderful opportunity for these exceptional students," said Mary Podjasek, president of the Diabetes Scholars Foundation. "These students are our future. We are delighted to be a part of making their dreams come true."

Recipients such as Hailey, who will pursue a degree in economics and math and statistics at the University of Southern California, stand out for academic excellence. Another talented graduate, Saloni, who will be majoring in pre-med at Augusta University Medical College of Georgia, is just one example of the remarkable young people awarded today.

"It's remarkable to see what our scholarship winners have achieved at such a young age. Each one has ambition, drive and maturity well beyond their years," said Jacqueline Giovanoni, global director of advocacy and professional relations, Lilly Diabetes. "These students are living proof of what can be accomplished with hard work and dedication, not only to their schools and communities, but also to their health, as they manage their diabetes. We are honored to support this part of their journey."

Lilly Diabetes also funds a Foundation program that grants conference scholarships to families to attend the Children with Diabetes^® Friends for Life^® conference, an annual gathering of clinicians, researchers, physicians and families with diabetes held in Orlando, Fla. This year, Lilly Diabetes will give eight families the opportunity to learn about diabetes from world-leading experts and share their experiences with other families of children with type 1 diabetes.

To learn more about the Diabetes Scholars Foundation, visit www.diabetesscholars.org. For more on how Lilly Diabetes supports families and students with diabetes, visit www.lillydiabetes.com.

About the Diabetes Scholars Foundation
In 2004, a group of parents who have children with type 1 diabetes created the Diabetes Scholars Foundation. Their goal was to empower people living with type 1 diabetes through education. Headquartered in Rolling Meadows, Ill., it is the only foundation that funds college scholarships open to all students in the United States with type 1 diabetes. In the past seven years, the Foundation has awarded over $1.25 million in college scholarships and helped over 3,000 people attend the annual Children with Diabetes^® Friends for Life^® conference in Orlando, Fla. In 2016, the Foundation received over 2,700 college scholarship applications from 50 states. Information about the Foundation is available at www.diabetesscholars.org.

About Lilly Diabetes
Lilly has been a global leader in diabetes care since 1923, when we introduced the world's first commercial insulin. Today we are building upon this heritage by working to meet the diverse needs of people with diabetes and those who care for them. Through research and collaboration, a broad and growing product portfolio and a continued determination to provide real solutions—from medicines to support programs and more—we strive to make life better for all those affected by diabetes around the world. For more information, visit www.lillydiabetes.com or follow us on Twitter: @LillyDiabetes.

About Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY)
Lilly is a global healthcare leader that unites caring with discovery to make life better for people around the world. We were founded more than a century ago by a man committed to creating high-quality medicines that meet real needs, and today we remain true to that mission in all our work. Across the globe, Lilly employees work to discover and bring life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve the understanding and management of disease, and give back to communities through philanthropy and volunteerism. To learn more about Lilly, please visit us at www.lilly.com and http://newsroom.lilly.com/social-channels.

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