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Scholarships are a great resource for students to help them financially in their college careers. Each year every department awards student scholarship based from certain criteria they meet.
The Kelce College of Business (KCOB) awards over a million dollars each year to students in their department. Originally, the annual scholarship award ceremony was going to be held on Friday, April 17, but due to campus shutting down and stay at home orders, the ceremony was cancelled.
This year the department awarded 158 scholarships to students within the departments of accounting, business economics, computer information systems, finance, international business, management, marketing and MBA programs.
“I am a student that is paying for my own education,” said Kathryn Baechle junior in accounting. “I plan on getting my master’s in accounting and go to law school, this scholarship will help me tremendously in financing my education.”
The scholarships given were made possible by the donations from alumni, and also businesses and organizations that often provide full time jobs for graduates from Pittsburg State.
In a press release from Pitt State, KCOB Dean Paul grimes spoke about how the donors have benefited many students by their donations.
“The generosity of these donors truly changes the lives of our students and their families,” Grimes said in the press release.
The scholarship awards vary for each student, which they use as support with student tuition and other fees.
“(With the scholarship) I am able to pay off some debt and use it towards books, fees, and other school related objects for the upcoming year,” said Wyntr Jacobs, sophomore in business management and marketing.
Another award that the KCOB gives out each year is selecting a recipient for the “Financial Leadership Award.” This award is presented to a graduate student that is pursing their master’s degree in business administration and has contributed a lot to the finance program. This year the recipient was Kelsey Tallent.
“These scholarships help develop the next generation of our region’s business leadership which in turn strengthens our community and state,” Grimes said in the press release.
This year the scholarships was totaled at $300,301 and there were 102 recipients of the awards.
“Coming into college, I had a hard time adjusting and I ended the first semester with a low GPA,” Baechle said. “After that, I figured it out, and I have been working really hard. This scholarship makes me feel like my hard work is paying off.”
There were 75 different scholarships funds that were awarded to students One scholarship awarded was the Phillips 66 “Energizing Your Future” scholarship sponsored by the energy company Phillips 66.
Apart from the scholarships awarded, each semester KCOB acknowledges students to be “Kelce Business Scholars”. This acknowledgment is given to students that has a cumulative GPA of the top three percent of their class. This year KCOB acknowledged 22 students. KCOB also awards seniors that have demonstrated immense character and contribution to their department, this year the department awarded 28 seniors.
“Networking is a huge part of business and building a relationship with them will make it easier to ask questions and get help,” Baechle said.