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From left to right: Wilber Arias Jr., Lacey Pierce and Cameron Kirkland.

NACOGDOCHES, Texas -- Three Stephen F. Austin State University students recently received $1,000 scholarships from Milam Masonic Lodge No. 2 in Nacogdoches. The scholarships were awarded at the lodge's September meeting to Wilber Arias Jr. of Nacogdoches, Cameron Kirkland of Killeen and Lacey Pierce of Douglass.

Arias is an Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ senior majoring in biology and Spanish. He graduated from Nacogdoches High School in 2008. Kirkland, also a senior, will be commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army when he graduates in August 2012. He is a graduate of the U.S. Army Airborne School in Fort Benning, Ga., where he conducted five parachute jumps and earned his Basic Parachutist Badge. He is a kinesiology major and has received the ROTC Ranger Challenge award.

Pierce is a kinesiology major with a minor in English and is a 2006 graduate of Douglass High School. In spring 2011, Pierce was included on the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Dean's List, and she is planning to complete her student teaching in spring 2012. She is married to Kyle Pierce and has a 3-year-old son.

Milam Masonic Lodge No. 2 is the oldest active Masonic lodge in Texas. It received its charter in 1836 and has been presenting scholarships to Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ students for the past five years.