Fifteen students pursuing higher education in agriculture will be able to reach their goals a bit easier this fall.
The GROWMARK Foundation is announcing a new, $1,500 scholarship program for students in the United States and Ontario, Canada, pursing two- or four-year degrees or trade school certification in an agriculture-related field.
“GROWMARK and the FS member cooperatives have supported youth and young leader education through scholarships and other donations of time and money for decades,” said Amy Bradford, GROWMARK Manager, Corporate Relations, and Manager of The GROWMARK Foundation. “Our scholarship program had been tied to specific universities throughout our core geography, but as our business is growing and evolving we see a need for an additional general scholarship available to students throughout the United States and Ontario.”
Applicants must complete an online application which includes academic information, community service and leadership activities, and essay questions regarding agriculture and cooperatives. Applications will be judged by a panel of agribusiness professionals.
“Expansion of the scholarship program provides the opportunity for more students to benefit from our interest in financially supporting those who choose to pursue an agriculture-related field of study, and potentially be employed by GROWMARK, an FS cooperative, or at one of our subsidiaries in the future,” Bradford said. “We believe this scholarship will help us identify those top students who can step into vital roles in the GROWMARK System in the future.”
High school seniors or students at any level of higher education may complete the application, which can be found at www.growmark.com/scholarship. Applications are due by midnight on April 15, 2017 and recipients will be notified by July 1, 2017.
The GROWMARK Foundation was formally incorporated in 2005 and supports 501(c)(3) not-for-profit charitable organizations. The Foundation is focused on programs and activities which support: the vitality of the industry of agriculture; agriculture education and consumer understanding of agriculture’s contributions to society and the economy; agricultural leadership development; and education about the benefits of the cooperative way of doing business. The GROWMARK System has been involved in a variety of philanthropic efforts, including youth and young leader education and development and scholarships, for decades.