Pioneer Electric Awards Scholarships to 18 Southwest Kansas Students

In 2020, Pioneer Electric awarded $23,000 in scholarships to 18 graduating high school students. These students were selected from over 60 applicants from eight schools serviced by Pioneer.

Pioneer Electric offers two scholarship programs for local students: the general Pioneer Electric Scholarship and the Powerline Technology Scholarship. Both scholarships are non-renewable and are awarded to the school of the applicant before they begin their fall semester.

Application Process

Applications are submitted digitally, each winter, and are then judged by a panel of Pioneer Electric’s members. Each application includes a written statement outlying why they (the applicant) would be a good candidate, a resume showcasing their achievements and a transcript from their school.

“Once we receive a student’s application, all of the student’s Identifying information is whited-out or removed,” said Drew Waechter, program coordinator. “This helps ensure that each applicant can be reviewed objectively and allows for their academics and community involvement to shine.”

Applications are then sorted, with those interested in powerline technology sent to operations employees for review. Top candidates are then given the opportunity for an interview and progress to the next step of the process.

“The interviews are important as they provide a chance for our judges to really meet the candidates and provides an opportunity for students to practice their skills,” said Waechter. “By the end of the night, our judges have the difficult job of reviewing each application and interview and then selecting their winners.

Our goal with the program is to build a relationship with these students. We want for them to succeed and help make all of our communities a bit brighter.”

Additional information about the scholarship programs is available at pioneerelectric.coop or by contacting dwaechter@pioneerelectric.coop.

NOT PICTURE: Isaac De La O