From left, seated, are Kingsford High School seniors Viola Warden, Anthony Palmer, and Matthew Swanson and in back are Michelle Kleikamp, executive secretary, Jamie Lockhart, counseling office assistant, and Rita Edberg, scholarship coordinator.

KINGSFORD –Kingsford High School is dedicated to providing excellent opportunities for its students to apply for scholarship funds to further their education after graduation, said Lyle Smithson, high school principal.

“Whether furthering their education means entering a vocational or two-year program to become a solar energy technician, or entering a four-year college or university to study biology, our school and our world needs to encourage and support high school graduates, and what better way than with scholarship funds to offset the cost of a post-secondary education,” Smithson said.

In the 2017-18 school year, the scholarship program at KHS has seen remarkable growth through the development of 20 new scholarships. These 20 new Kingsford scholarships add to a list of more than 70 that are already established for KHS seniors. A majority of these scholarships are awarded to more than one student; many of them have multiple awards that will be made to multiple students.

Kingsford High School is proud to have worked with the individuals, families, groups, and organizations in the establishment of the following new scholarships: KHS Academic Booster Club Scholarship, KHS Athletic Booster Club Scholarship, KHS Music Booster Club-Don Holmes Memorial Scholarship, KHS Class of 1967 Alumni Scholarship, Kaad Family Dentistry Scholarship, Arnhoelter-Gussert Family Scholarship, U.P. Whitetails/Charles (Chuck) Hinman Jr. Memorial Scholarship, KHS Class of 1992 Alumni Scholarship, Richard and Darlene Dixon Scholarship, Kingsford Middle School Scholarship, Linda Lobeck Memorial Scholarship, Taylor Bosley Memorial Scholarship, Jolene Treml Memorial Scholarship, KHS Class of 1986/Taylor Bosley Memorial Scholarship, Tim Touchett Legacy Scholarship, Anita G. Bonkowski Memorial Scholarship, Dennis Skog Memorial Scholarship, Kathleen Temple Novickis Scholarship, KHS General Scholarship, and Tom & Lu Edwards Vocational Scholarship.

Whether a family has chosen to honor the memory of a loved one, or an organization wishes to develop a scholarship to share their passion for continuing education with the younger generation, the creation of a scholarship carries with it an opportunity to show support for the diverse talents and interests of young people.

The nature and scope of these new scholarships varies to allow for many KHS seniors to apply. Some are broad, with no specific field of study or GPA requirement, and others are established to recognize and award scholarships to students following a particular degree path.

In addition to development of new scholarships, the KHS scholarship program works with many outside agencies to make available to its students the wealth of scholarships that are available across the Upper Peninsula, the state of Michigan, and across the nation.

The coordination of establishing new scholarships is just one piece of a large scholarship program that KHS is very proud to provide to its student body.

In the preceding graduating years of 2013-2017, the KHS Scholarship Program has worked with its graduating seniors to have been recognized with scholarship awards that average $3.2 million each year. With this total, KHS notes that of the seniors that apply for scholarships, 78 percent are thus recognized with scholarship awards.

Individuals interested in more information on the KHS scholarship program, or who are interested in developing a scholarship can contact Rita Edberg, scholarship coordinator/KHS, or Lyle Smithson or by calling 906-779-2670, ext. 5, for more information.