Last week, Great Plains College was pleased to announce that over $100,000 in Entrance Scholarships were provided to 99 deserving students at their fall scholarship receptions in October.

“Making the choice to continue your education is a big decision and we understand many students weigh the cost of the program heavily before deciding to take that step,” said Bryce Martin, donor services coordinator at Great Plains College. The final total awarded came in at $114,000, “Receiving financial support through the form of a scholarship creates new possibilities, removes barriers and ultimately offers a pathway to education that may not have otherwise been possible.”

Additional scholarships will be awarded later this academic year to students at the Biggar, Kindersley, Maple Creek, Martensville, Swift Current and Warman Campuses, according to the release, as local highlights from this fall’s scholarship distribution include $9,000 awarded to 10 students at the Kindersley and Warman Campuses.

“We can’t thank our donors enough for the generosity they continue to show year after year,” added Martin. Since 2009, more than $2 million has been distributed to students enrolled in full-time student loan-eligible programs, “As National Philanthropy Day approaches on November 15, we want to send an extra ‘thank you’ to each of our donors whose dollars go directly to supporting our students in their studies. Without their contributions, none of this would be possible.”

Other programs included in the release were a few International Student Awards, where five awards of $2,000 each were presented to international students at the Swift Current and Warman campuses. Also, Adult Basic Education Persistence Awards, the Living Sky Casino Indigenous Adult Basic Education Persistence Awards and the SREDA Indigenous Economic Development Scholarship.

Again according to the release, Great Plains College is also proud to have established the Ukrainian Student Emergency Relief Bursary this year to provide emergency funding assistance to Ukrainian students whose continued education is at risk due to unexpected financial challenges during the war in their home country, paying out a total of $21,000 distributed to 42 students this month.