· The Full-Tuition Scholarships Are Named After Long-Time WHO Radio Farm Broadcaster Mark Pearson.
· More than $1.3 million has been Distributed in Mark Pearson Scholarships to DMACC Students Since 2016.
· A total of 323 Iowa High School Students Have Benefitted from the Mark Pearson FFA Leadership Scholarships.
Ankeny, Iowa— DMACC has awarded 15 Mark Pearson FFA Leadership Scholarships for students entering the College in the fall of 2021. The scholarship is named after long-time WHO Radio Farm broadcaster Mark Pearson who died in 2012 at the age of 54.
The recipients may apply the full-tuition scholarship to any of DMACC’s nearly 200 degree programs offered through the College’s 12 campuses and learning centers.
“Some of the greatest leaders in Iowa have an FFA background. DMACC is proud to play a role in helping the next generation of leaders prepare themselves for their careers, and we are honored to name it after Mark Pearson,” said DMACC President Rob Denson.
The competitive scholarship was awarded to a total of 15 students: two students from each of the six Iowa FFA districts, and three students-at-large. All graduating seniors who served as presidents of their FFA chapters in Iowa during their junior or senior year area were eligible to apply for the scholarship. Students must maintain a high school GPA of at least 2.0, submit an application for admission to DMACC, provide an essay of 500 to 1,200 words describing their FFA leadership experiences, activities, accomplishments and career goals, as well as provide letters of recommendation.
“The student must enroll full-time in an AA, AS or AAS degree program at any DMACC campus or learning center, maintain a 2.5 GPA while a student at DMACC and enroll in the Leadership in Agriculture course at DMACC,” said Academic Advisor Megan Snook-Lautner.
The recipients of the Mark Pearson FFA Leadership Scholarships for the Fall of 2021 include:
· Kylie Dietz, Nashua
· Karter John Kennebeck, Glidden
· Lindsey Laughlin, West Liberty
· Maria Medberry, Volga
· Connor Moore, Donnellson
· Caleb Nicks, Lake Park
· McKenzie Jo Niemeyer, Zearing
· Molly Ann Niewoehner. Hawkeye
· Emily Plagman, Cumberland
· Emily Starr Roberts, Deep River
· Paige Catherine Roberts, Albert City
· Natalie Ann Royce, Des Moines
· Tyler Tessman, Audubon
· Cole Thilges, West Bend
· Brayden Weldon, Maxwell
The Mark Pearson FFA Leadership Scholarship was created in April of 2016 in an announcement made in the Formal Office of the at-the-time Governor Terry Branstad.
Mark Pearson, who died in 2012, hosted Iowa Public Television’s “Market to Market’ program for more than 20 years and was the host of WHO Radio’s “The Big Show.” Pearson was a Madison County farmer who also served as an Assistant Secretary of the Iowa Department of Agriculture and was the Markets Editor for Successful Farming Magazine.
To date, more than $1.3 million has been distributed in Mark Pearson scholarships for DMACC students. A total of 323 students have received these full-tuition scholarships since 2016.
For more information on the Mark Pearson FFA Leadership Scholarship, visit: www.dmacc.edu/pearsonscholar.
(contributed press release and photo, DMACC)
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