BUCKHANNON — The deadline for any high school junior in West Virginia to apply for a four-year full ride scholarship to West Virginia Wesleyan College is here.
Students have through the day Friday to apply for the 12th annual West Virginia Scholar Program. The full ride to the Buckhannon institution is valued at approximately $160,000.
W.Va. Wesleyan Vice President John Waltz said the program has many benefits.
“All the regular direct costs to go to school at West Virginia Wesleyan are covered for the student,” he said. “There are great awards for the runner-ups and great awards for all the students that apply.
“They get the first crack at applying for colleges too. This is their first application to West Virginia Wesleyan.”
There are two ways to apply for free with one being at wvmetronews.com and the other at wvscholar.com. Applicants provide an essay, a transcript, and any test score information.
Waltz said the evaluators for the scholarship look at much more than grades, though.
“Maybe work that they’ve done through their church or local civic organization,” he said. “Things like participating in sports or the arts, especially being a leader in those areas.
“We’ve had people that have started special service projects or giving projects in where they are. Maybe they have a unique story about obstacles they have overcome, challenges they’ve worked through.”
Waltz said they have gotten to the point where scholarship recipients are making impacts in the state in the professional world as physicians, attorneys, and other high profile jobs.
The semifinalists will be announced May 1 with the names of the finalists released May 22. Online voting takes place from May 22 until June 15. The West Virginia Scholar Program Awards Luncheon is set for June 19 on the Wesleyan campus.
Joining West Virginia Wesleyan and MetroNews as sponsors are the West Virginia Hospital Association, ZMM Architects & Engineers, West Virginia Forestry Association, KoMax Business Systems, West Virginia Farm Bureau, A.I.P. (Architectural Interior Products), Friends of Coal, and RCB Wealth Management.
Waltz said they just want high school juniors in the state to give the program a chance.
“Almost every student that ends up winning the scholarship or getting one of the runner-up awards or any of the awards have almost always said ‘I never thought I could win it and someone urged me to do so in the last week or two to do it,’” Waltz said.
“We hear that constantly.”
By Jake Flatley
