The Montcalm Community College Foundation recently established four scholarships that will provide educational opportunities for a variety of students.
The MCCF Nancy Steele Allen Edwards Memorial Nursing Scholarship was established in memory of Edwards, a Greenville native who worked for several years as a nurse in Georgia. When Edwards passed away earlier this year, her husband, J. Byron Edwards, established the award for MCC students with minimum 2.5 GPAs who are pursuing a degree in nursing.
The Edwards scholarship, which may be used for tuition, fees and books, was awarded for the first time this fall to MCC nursing students Tonya Warren of Cedar Springs and Heather Lambertson of Greenville.
Warren, a first-year student in MCC’s nursing program, said she and her family made some lifestyle changes in preparation for her to attend college to pursue her dream of becoming a nurse.
“I was determined to go back to college, and the timing was right in my life to be able to do this,” Warren said. “But, I don’t know how I would have done it without this scholarship.
“The scholarship really allowed me to quit my full-time job and come back to school,” she said.
Lambertson was recently unemployed when she learned she would receive the scholarship.
“My resources went from something to nothing,” she said. “For me, receiving this scholarship was like my little secret angel. It was a gift for me to have someone I didn’t know help me get through this.”
A $250 scholarship in memory of former Central Montcalm High School (CMHS) student Travis Bingaman will be awarded for the first time in the spring for the 2010-2011 academic year to a CMHS graduate who has a minimum 2.0 GPA.
Bingaman’s family and friends established the scholarship in his memory following his death in 2006.
“Travis planned to attend Montcalm Community College,” said his grandfather, Frank Tuttle, of Sheridan. “Travis was a very good student and he was active in athletics at the high school level.”
Tuttle said the scholarship was established as “a lasting memory” of Travis to help other CMHS students achieve their educational goals.
The Leslie K. Morford Scholarship Fund recently was established by MCC Alumnus James Forrest of Texas in honor of Morford for “the inspiration and contribution he made to me and numerous other students over the years.”
Morford retired from MCC in 1990 after serving for more than 23 years as a faculty member.
MCC Dean of Continuing Education and Instructional Services Susan Hatto and her husband, Phillip Adler, established the Hatto-Adler fund in honor of their baby, Grace Anne Hatto-Adler, who passed away earlier this year.
“Education and college were part of our hopes and dreams for her. With this endowment, we will have the opportunity to help others realize that dream,” Hatto said.
MCC Director of Institutional Advancement Terry Smith said that generous contributions from donors make it possible for MCC and the MCC Foundation to support education through scholarships. During the 2009-2010 school year, MCC and the MCC Foundation awarded 109 scholarships to 99 students valued at nearly $70,000.
“The MCC Foundation list of named scholarships has grown to almost 40 in recent years,” Smith said. “The many people who support those funds make a positive difference for our students and, ultimately, our community.”
Contact Smith at terrys@montcalm.edu or 989-328-1284 or visit MCC’s Web site at www.montcalm.edu for more information about MCC and MCC Foundation scholarship opportunities.