Country Education Fund Edward River Region member Bruce Simpson said the group had $21,000 to distribute this year, with grants awarded to the 34 applicants ranging from $1500 to $250.
‘‘The individual scholarships were determined on the financial need criteria, and we agreed to make sure that every entrant got a share this year,’’ Mr Simpson said,
‘‘One of the things that came across to us in regards to all applications was that they had all confronted COVID-19 with a great levels of resilience and adaptability.
‘‘Each showed a real preparedness to get on with the job despite the disruptions.
‘‘Our applicants impress us every year, but this year’s applicants particularly took it all in their stride.’’
Mr Simpson said due to existing arrangements with the Country Education Fund, any local grant recipient who will be attending La Trobe University will receive matching funding from the university.
Mr Simpson said the amount of funding distributed was remarkable given the restrictions on fundraising in the last 12 months.
‘‘We obviously weren’t able to host our usual fundraising events in the last 12 months, but we had some great support from TransGrid, Thyne Reid and individual donors.
‘‘Some of our donors have allowed for scholarships directed specifically at young people going in to agriculture related courses, and we also now have a scholarship in the memory of well known local Noel Miller.
‘‘We had a great cross section of applicants, including a number of apprentices.’’
Applications for Country Education Fund Edward River Region open in December each year, and are designed to assist with a diverse range of education and career pursuits including apprenticeships, traineeships, cadetships, degrees, diplomas and certificate level studies or entry careers.
For more information, go to https://cef.org.au/foundations/edward-river/.
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