ϳԹ is the school of choice for 10 recipients of the 2021 The Gates Foundation-Ross County Scholar’s Fund
The newest class of The Gates Foundation-Ross County Scholar’s Fund recipients has been announced. The Foundation awarded scholarships to 14 students, 10 of whom plan to attend ϳԹ.
Larry Gates and his wife, Mary, established the fund in 2004 to help Ross County students pursue their ambitions.
Since the first scholarships were awarded, more than 230 grants have been given to deserving Ross County students. The 2021 recipients mark the 18th class of scholars.
Of the current scholarship recipients, seven will attend the ϳԹ Athens campus this fall, three are enrolled at ϳԹ Chillicothe, and the remaining four students will attend other universities in Ohio.
Through this scholarship fund, the Gates’ have captured the spirit of the Ross County region and have put in practice the value of “paying it forward.”
“Our decision to support scholarships is driven by a strong belief in young people and the power of education. Some of the joys of this undertaking have been the wonderful people we have met, especially the scholarship recipients and their families,” they said. “To see these young people go forward and have successful academic and professional careers is tremendously rewarding. People often ask if we would do it again, and the answer is unequivocally yes.”
The recipients and their enrolled institutions include: Sarah Beck, ϳԹ Athens; Lauren Finney, Miami (Ohio) University; Kayla Fitzpatrick, ϳԹ Chillicothe; Kiana Fitzpatrick, Bowling Green State University, David Hirsch, Ohio State University; Meghann Leedy, ϳԹ Athens; Gabriel Mallow, ϳԹ Athens; Sarah Massie, Ohio State University; Conor McMahon, ϳԹ Chillicothe; Autumn Mohan, ϳԹ Athens; Nickolas Nesser, ϳԹ Chillicothe; Joshua Parker, ϳԹ Athens; Chris Postage, ϳԹ Athens; and Jarrett Seebohm, ϳԹ Athens.
Gates Foundation Directors include Nicole McLaughlin, Michelle Shanholtzer, Matthew Haller, Kimberly Hirsch, Nancy Harris, Jack Jeffery and Valerie Miller.
Mr. Gates has been active in the Chillicothe community and with ϳԹ. He has served as chairman of the Regional Coordinating Council at OUC and served on the board of directors for the ϳԹ Foundation in Athens. Additionally, he worked to develop the concept for the Entrepreneur Center at OUC and served as fundraising chairman for ϳԹ Chillicothe Child Development Center.
The donor-advised fund is administered by the ϳԹ Foundation, the private fundraising arm of the university. More information on the Gates Foundation-Ross County Scholar’s Fund is available online at .