By Scott Harvey
Austin – Texas students ready to serve their state and country by participating in the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) can receive an award of up to $10,000 for the 2011-2012 academic year.
Monday's announcement by District 2 State Senator Bob Deuell says that contingent on available funding, three additional years of scholarship awards could be available.
A recipient must agree to four years of ROTC training at a private or public institution of higher education in Texas. After graduation, the recipient must make a four-year commitment to the Texas Army National Guard, Texas Air National Guard, Texas State Guard, U.S. Coast Guard, or U.S. Merchant Marine, or contract to serve as a commissioned officer in any branch of the United States armed services.
Sen. Deuell is encouraging students from District 2 to apply by sending their high school transcripts and resumes to his office in Austin.
District 2 is comprised of Delta, Fannin, Hopkins, Hunt, Kaufman, Rains, Rockwall and Van Zandt counties and portions of Dallas and Smith counties.
To be considered for this scholarship, a student must meet two of the following four academic criteria: be on track to graduate with the Distinguished Achievement or International Baccalaureate program; have a current high school GPA of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale; achieve a college readiness score of 1590 on the SAT or 23 on the ACT; or be currently ranked in the top one-third of the student's high school graduating class.
Funding for the award is made available through the Texas Armed Services Scholarship Program, created by the 81st Texas Legislature. Under this program, each Texas state senator and representative may appoint one scholarship recipient, and the governor and lieutenant governor may each appoint two scholarship recipients.
Interested students from Senate District 2 may apply for the scholarship by sending their high school transcripts and resumes to Sen. Deuell at P.O. Box 12068, Capitol Station, Austin, TX 78711. Include a statement of 300 words or less, describing the factors that have influenced you to pursue a career in the Texas National Guard or United States armed services. Applications must be received by September 1.