Almanor Scholarship available to all Chester graduates
Submitted by Laura MacGregor,
Trustee, Almanor Scholarship Fund
The Almanor Scholarship is available to all students, who are graduating this year, or have graduated, from any accredited high school in the Chester/Lake Almanor Basin. The ten-year scholarship is available to college students, who meet the eligibility and academic requirements, even if he or she graduated from an Almanor Basin High School decades ago or have had a gap in their academic pursuits.
Most Almanor Scholarship Fund (ASF) recipients initially applied for the scholarship as high school seniors. However, those, who did not apply at that time, are still eligible to submit an application, if they plan to be a full-time college student.
Although the grants are paid each qualifying term, the application process occurs annually. Applications will be accepted between March 1 and June 30, for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Truman Collins established the Almanor Scholarship Fund in 1945. It was designed to aid young men and women in their pursuit of higher education. Recipients are selected by the Fund’s Trustees, after review by the Selection Committee. The 1946 recipient of the scholarship was Pauline Foote, daughter of the first Collins Pine Company Sales Manager. The award was $100. The scholarship award is currently $4,200 per year.
The Almanor Scholarship Fund requires that graduating Lake Almanor Basin high school applicants have a cumulative academic GPA of 3.25. The applicant must have been enrolled in a Chester/Lake Almanor High School for at least three years or have been enrolled in a Chester/Lake Almanor Elementary School for at least four years prior to graduating as a senior.
If the applicant does not qualify from high school, a student may attend one full year of college, at an accredited school, on a full-time basis, and have a cumulative grade point average of 3.00 or better before applying. Full-time status is defined as taking an average of 12 units per semester or quarter.
Students must reapply annually, by the end of June, in order to be considered for the next academic year’s scholarship. Students may receive the scholarship for up to 6 years of undergraduate work and 4 years of graduate work, as long as they maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or better.
The ASF awarded a record high of 71 scholarships in 1981, with 48 per year being the average for the past 20 years. Since 1945, the Almanor Scholarship Fund has awarded more than 2700 scholarships, totaling almost 3.5 million dollars. This remarkable program has been funded by the Collins Pine Company and a few generous donors.
The 2023-2024 Almanor Scholarship applications for Chester High School seniors are available from the school counselor. The applications for other high school seniors and college students are being mailed, as requested, or with the final grant payment for this academic year. For additional information, please contact Laura MacGregor, 258-2111, ext. 7013.
