Kye Bergbower

”It can be easy to give up in school,” says senior and Illinois State Scholar Kye Bergbower. “I’ve experienced that a lot, especially in high school.” But getting through those troubled times has taught him that it’s not enough to fake it and just get by; you have to put in the work to succeed. If you do put in the work, and persevere through those inevitable bouts of self-doubt and despair, the rewards waiting for you on the other side will be all the more sweet.

This year, Kye’s hard work and persistence has paid off in a big way, earning him designation as one of NCHS’ five 2024 Illinois State Scholars. “It means a lot,” he says. “Just looking back to all the years in school, working hard. It means a lot to me.”

You might think that someone with an academic record like the one Kye boasts would be all-in on continuing his education at the college level, and Kye is not exactly against the idea. But he is decidedly open-minded on the subject of continuing in school, post graduation. “Whenever I first started high school, I wanted to go to college, but over the years I’ve kind of grown out of that idea,” he states plainly and unapologetically. However, he is open to the possibility of continuing on with his education after graduating from NCHS, and thinks he will earn an associate’s degree, at least. “I kind of feel like I need to go to college,” he muses, “but then again, I don’t think you have to go to college to get a good job in the workforce.”

And out in the workforce is where Kye really sees himself in the near future — it’s obvious that he is adept at working with his mind, but what really drives him is working with his hands. He is leaning toward a career in engineering or construction, and has already taken some steps in that direction. “I’ve had a construction job the last couple of summers, that’s really sparked my interest,” he says.

Kye’s summer construction jobs, no matter how much he enjoys them, are just that – labor, performed for a wage. But working on the family farm is, for him, a labor of love, one which he expects to perform far into the future. “My grandpa and his brothers were the ones that started it, and my dad took it over. He’s really grown it a lot,” Kye says proudly. Since his dad has only one sister, he relies on Kye and his siblings to help out on the farm, where they raise corn and soybeans, and keep a couple-hundred head of cattle. “Over the past couple of years, I’ve really started helping him a lot,” says Kye. “I can see myself, every harvest or planting season, helping him on the farm.”

With his background and interest in farming, agriculture classes are practically a given for Kye. This year, he is taking Agriculture Business, in which the students completed a project making and selling fall displays. Of the 300 displays sold between the two classes, Kye alone was responsible for 50 sales. The displays sold for $55 or $75 dollars a piece, and all profit went back to the students, since they purchased the materials and supplied the labor.

Kye also participates in FFA, but relates that athletics have kept him from being as active as he would like. “Basketball was my main sport,” he says. He speaks in the past tense because he was the starting point guard on Newton’s varsity team, before tearing an ACL during a game in December. But even though he no longer treads the hardwood, he still enjoys treading through the woods, hunting and fishing.

Although he doesn’t plan to range too far from Newton after graduation, he will inevitably move on from NCHS and build a life for himself on the foundation of what he has learned there. Kye is grateful for the education he has acquired, but even more appreciative of the steadfast support he received from the teachers and staff, who were always “super-supportive. You could feel comfortable around here, you didn’t have any worries about anything.”

He pauses for a brief moment, and then says, simply and eloquently, “Everyone is family.” Kye feels fortunate to be a part of a community that feels like a family, and the community family is richer for having members like Kye.