$500.00 Available to High School Seniors

USA Communications of Shellsburg supports the continuing education of the high school seniors whose parents are a member of Farmers Mutual Telephone Cooperative of Shellsburg and have their phone service in the Shellsburg, Benton Township, Urbana or Alburnett exchange.

Eligibility
Applicants must:
1) be a graduating high school senior;
2) receive his/her local telephone service from USA Communications in Shellsburg, Benton Township, Urbana or Alburnett
3) successfully complete the first semester in an accredited two-year or four-year college or university, or vocational- technical school.

USA Communication scholarships will be awarded to deserving students whose academic credentials fall within an average to above-average range.

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How to Apply
1) Complete the scholarship application in full.

2) Prepare a typed 300-word essay that addresses the following:
    a) explain why the services provided by USA Communications are important to you and/or members of your family
    b) tell us where you plan to work and how you plan to give back to your community once you start your career.

3) Have a high school teacher or counselor complete the attached Educator’s Recommendation form.
Recommendation must be sent in a sealed envelope from the letter’s author.

4) Submit one letter of recommendation from a local community leader, elected official or local business representative. Recommendations must be sent in a sealed envelope from the letter’s author.

5) Include your most recent grade transcript (all seven semesters must be included.)

6) If available, include test scores and/or class rank with the transcript.

Award Procedure
·$500.00 scholarships will be awarded in May 2011 to a maximum of two students in each of our four telephone exchanges.
·Applications will be reviewed by the Farmers Mutual Telephone Cooperative Board of Directors.
·Winners will be notified by mail in April 2011.
·Scholarships will be awarded on a one- time basis and will not be renewable. However scholarship winners, who are pursuing technical degree programs covering such systems as Cisco, Lucent, Fujitsu, Nortel, Paradyne and the like, can apply for a second-year consideration provided they have successfully completed year one.
·Award will be paid upon proof of second-semester registration at an institute of higher education, and will be issued in January 2012.
·Scholarship will be awarded without regard to race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex or disability.
·Incomplete / non-typed applications/essays will not be considered.

Make sure to:
·Include a completed application form
·Include a transcript (all 7 semesters) and any test scores and/or class ranking.
·Include a 300-word essay.
·Include an Educator’s Recommendation.
·Include a letter of recommendation from a local community leader, elected official or local business representative.
·Postmark your entry to USA Communications by April 1, 2011.

You may download a copy of the Scholarship Application Form here. Print the application, fill it out, and return the completed application to USA Communincations.

The latest version of Adobe Acrobat is required to view the application form. A free copy of Adobe Reader may be downloaded here.