Local students receive $130K in scholarships from foundation

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) — The Community Foundation of the Mahoning Valley awarded $130,747 in scholarships to 73 students in the Mahoning Valley.

High schools represented by this year’s awardees are:

• Austintown Fitch
• Brookfield
• Canfield
• Cardinal Mooney
• Champion
• Homer-Center (Pa.)
• Howland
• Hubbard
• Jackson-Milton
• Joseph Badger
• Lakeview
• Mathews
• Poland Seminary
• Salem
• Warren G. Harding
• West Branch
• Youngstown Rayen Early College

There are over a dozen scholarships in the Foundation ranging from a few to several thousand dollars, and some of them offer renewals to help students already in college.

“Scholarships, including the Community Foundation award, have been the only reason I have been able to continue my education,” says Abigail Stephens, a recipient of the Willo Scholarship studying environmental and conservation biology at Kent State University.

The Purple Heart Gary Gutelius Memorial Scholarship was awarded to two recipients, each receiving $2,500. One of them went to Jackson-Milton High School valedictorian Aiden Cole, who is enrolled in Dartmouth College’s Philosophy, Politics and Economics program.

“I never met my great-grandfather. His sacrifice is something that is only an echo in my grandmother’s home. … My grandmother said he always wanted his children to be good people. That was something his service taught him,” Cole said.

The Purple Heart scholarship is awarded to veterans who have received the Purple Heart or their descendants. Cole’s great-grandfather received the honor.

The Community Foundation offers a universal application and every high school student in the Mahoning Valley is encouraged to apply. Scholarship applications for 2024 are closed. Check with your school guidance counselor or the Community Foundation website for the opening of 2025 applications.

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