Scholarship workshop held in Fairfield

The first ever scholarship workshop was held Thursday, Dec. 19, in the Cambridge Building at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds in Fairfield. Over 60 local high school junior/senior parents and students attended the event hosted by The Greater Jefferson County Foundation and Jefferson County ISU Extension.

Topics covered included choosing a career, choosing a college, points on properly completing a scholarship application and many more observations from the presenters. Many parents commented that the event clarified not only the scholarship process, but some of the freshman college experience as well.

Board Members for the Foundation included Ron Haines of MidwestOne Bank, Peggy Mottet, Frank Redeker representing the Millane Trust and Extension Council member/Middle School teacher Cory Klehm were part of the event, as well as retired teacher Diane Goudy who brought her mentoring and teaching expertise.

Scholarship Chair Lori Stever said, 'We were so fortunate to have FHS graduates Mark Diers and Corynn Klehm attend our first ever scholarship workshop. They spoke about their experience filling out applications for local and foundation scholarships and gave advice on how to stay organized and the benefit of starting applications early.

'The attendance last night far exceeded our expectations for the event,” continued Stever, 'so much so that we even needed to change to a larger space 30 minutes into the workshop! All the students and parents that attended were very appreciative of the information provided and the opportunity to ask questions about the scholarship application process. We count the night as a win for our seniors and for the Greater Jefferson County Foundation Scholarship Committee and ISU Extension Council.”

Diane Goudy remarked, 'The attendance and interest level was a very appreciated surprise because of the busy holiday season. I was so glad so many students and parents found it important...because it is. The feedback showed a strong sense of satisfaction from the attendees.”

Goudy said she was pleased when Lori Stever asked her to volunteer at the free scholarship workshop.

'It was so great to know that the Jefferson County Foundation is not only ready to support our high school students financially, but they are also ready to help students with the scholarship process,” Goudy said.

Goudy explained Future Iowa Ready – Last Dollar Scholarships, a program rolled out by Iowa governor Kim Reynolds in November. The Last-Dollar Scholarship focuses on meeting business and industry workforce needs in four key areas: (1) health care and biosciences; (2) information technology; (3) advanced manufacturing production, installation and maintenance; and (4) construction and engineering. The scholarship covers tuition and qualified fees for postsecondary credentials up to two-year degrees after an eligible student has applied other non-repayable state and federal aid. The average award for fall 2019 was $1,132.

Administrator for the foundation, Barbara Kistler, said, 'I want to thank everyone for their patience and thank all those volunteers who helped make this such a success and learning experience for the students. That was the whole point of the event!”

Another workshop is scheduled for early February for those students and parents who were unable to attend the December event and will be announced soon. Students are reminded that the submission deadline for Foundation Scholarships is March 13, 3 p.m.

For more information or to answer any questions, contact The Greater Jefferson County Foundation at 641-472-0758 or email at gjcf0758@windstream.net. The website is www.greaterjeffersoncountyfoundation.org