A Feel Good Meeting and a highlight of our Rotary year was provided by Jon Callaway sharing the results of the rigorous selection process of the Scholarship Committee whose members include Paula Possin, Ginny Olson and Randy Sproule. Jon explained the process from inviting counselors from all the Madison area schools to recommend students through to the painstaking review of each candidate.
This year 37 candidates were screened before the committee narrowed the list to the top ten plus five alternates. Alternates are selected to fill openings created when a student’s plans change. Each of the ten students will receive a $1,000 scholarship ($500 per semester) for the first year and will be matched by Randy Sproule’s family for $1,000 in year two.
Jon reviewed the criteria for candidates which include outstanding academic performance, proven financial need, being the first in a family to attend college, and selecting Madison College as their institution of choice. Not one of the criteria is citizenship and one of the highly recommended selections would not have been on the list of finalists otherwise.