The scholarship
The Alice & Charles Taylor Scholar-Athlete LEAD Scholarship
An Idaho scholarship for senior scholar-athletes who lead in the classroom, in sport, and in their community — named for two people who never treated those as separate things.
Gary and Angela Taylor announcing the scholarship during their Hall of Fame acceptance speeches, Mountain Home, 2015. Charles and Alice were in the room.
What it recognizes
LEAD is the standard, and all four letters are weighed.
Selected students illustrate the ways they lead across every part of their lives. Nobody is named for being exceptional at one of these and absent on the rest.
Leadership
Educational Excellence
Athletic Achievement
Distinguished Community Service
Open to young men and young women. The Foundation’s iWIN Sports programs are built specifically for girls and women. This scholarship is not, and never has been — Charles and Alice Taylor raised three children, and the award carries all of their names.
Eligibility standards
Six things, and one of them surprises people.
Nominated students must meet all of the following. Read the second and third carefully — they are the two most often assumed rather than checked.
Who may nominate
Teachers, coaches, administrators — or the scholar-athletes themselves. A nomination from an adult carries no more weight than a student’s own application, and it is often how a student who assumed this was not for them ends up in front of the committee.
If one of these is close
If you are near the line on any of the six and unsure whether to bother, ask us rather than guessing yourself out of it. We would rather answer the question than lose the application.
Statewide rollout · 2026–2028
We are expanding in three stages rather than announcing statewide and reaching half of it.
Idaho has six athletic districts. The scholarship opens to two of them each year until all six are covered.
Southwestern Idaho and South Central Idaho. Complete — 14 scholars named.
Southeastern Idaho and Eastern Idaho. With Region 1 still eligible, this opens the scholarship to all of Southern Idaho.
Northern Idaho and North Central Idaho. From this point the scholarship serves student-athletes in all six Idaho districts.
Mountain Home is eligible every single year
Without exception, and regardless of the rollout. This began at Mountain Home High School and the school is part of the program permanently.
In the 2026 cycle, three Mountain Home scholar-athletes received a combined $6,000.
If your district is not open yet
Your school will be eligible in its region’s year. Tell us now and we will make sure your counselor hears from us when that year comes, rather than hoping the news reaches you.
Or email hello@taylorleadscholarship.com — some school and work computers block the button above.
How it began
Announced from a podium in Mountain Home, in front of the two people it is named for.
In 2015, Gary and Angela Taylor were inducted into the first class of the Mountain Home High School Athletic Hall of Fame. During their acceptance speeches — with their parents in the audience — they announced a scholarship in Charles and Alice’s names.
“Their emphasis on the importance of hard work, both in the classroom and on the playing surface, was the catalyst for the successful journey we’ve been fortunate to experience over the years.”Gary and Angela Taylor · Mountain Home High School Athletic Hall of Fame, 2015
“Receiving this scholarship feels like getting a prize after winning a race you thought no one was watching — showing LEAD qualities doesn’t mean you will always get recognized for it, but when you are it feels all worth it.”Ruthanne Fischer · 2026 LEAD Scholar, Nampa High School
Charles Taylor served twenty-seven years in the United States Air Force, including a long posting at Mountain Home Air Force Base with the 366th Tactical Unit as a Senior Master Sergeant. Alice Taylor was a paraprofessional in School District #193 for approximately thirty years. Both spent their years in Mountain Home in community service alongside the work.
The scholarship began in 2015 with a donation to the girls’ and boys’ athletic programs at Mountain Home High School. The student scholarships followed the year after, and the family funded them personally for nearly a decade before the Foundation existed.
Three children, one high school, three sports each
Football and track. Went on to Boise State University, where he walked on to the football team.
Football, basketball and track. Went on to Stanford University as a scholarship athlete on the football team.
Volleyball, basketball and track. Walked on to the women’s basketball team at Stanford and later earned a scholarship. MBA from NYU Stern.
Which is where the two-sport standard comes from. All three Taylor children played multiple sports at Mountain Home, and all three went on to compete in college. The requirement is not administrative — it reflects what this family actually believes about how young athletes should be developed.
Where to go next
Three doors, depending on who you are.
You want to apply
The full requirements list and the application itself. The 2026–27 cycle is open from December 1 and closes April 9. Each award is $1,000, and scholars are notified in mid-May.
Application information →You are a counselor, coach or administrator
Everything you need to nominate a student or promote this at your school — and it takes about ten minutes.
Partner portal →You want to see who has received it
Every scholar named since 2015, and the fourteen named in the 2026 cycle.
Scholarship recipients →Alice & Charles
The name on the award letter is theirs.
Alice Taylor has since died. The scholarship carries her forward, and the Foundation is working to endow it permanently so that no future Idaho scholar-athlete is named because a fundraiser went well.
The Alice & Charles Taylor Scholar-Athlete LEAD Scholarship · The Taylor LEAD Foundation · P.O. Box 8744, Boise, ID 83707 · EIN 99-2465893