Four local students are the inaugural recipients of the Flint Energies Foundation Technical College Scholarship. The following winners will each receive a $1,000 scholarship towards their technical college education for the 2016-2017 academic year:

Elizabeth Paz / Reynolds, Georgia / Central Georgia Technical College

Kirt Collins / Byron, Georgia / Central Georgia Technical College

Sharmon Johnson / Thomaston, Georgia / Gordon State College

Annie Streeter / Americus, Georgia / South Georgia Technical College

Flint Energies, a Touchstone Energy Cooperative, is committed to providing service to its members with accountability, integrity, innovation and commitment to community. Scholarship applicants were required to complete an application which included four short essays, explaining how they demonstrate these core values in their lives. A panel of retired educators judged these essays blindly, and those scores – coupled with the students’ grade-point averages, community involvement and financial need – determined the winners. The Flint Energies Foundation Scholarship is limited to students whose primary residence is within one of the 17 counties served by Flint Energies:  Bibb, Chattahoochee, Crawford, Dooly, Harris, Houston, Macon, Marion, Monroe, Muscogee, Peach, Schley, Sumter, Talbot, Taylor, Twiggs and Upson.

“We’re delighted to assist these accomplished students achieve their dream of a college education. This is the first time we have been able to award scholarships and we are looking forward to assisting many more students for years to come,” says Marian McLemore, Manager of Public Relations at Flint Energies.

The applications for the 2017 scholarship program will be posted on the cooperative’s website in December 2016. The next round of scholarships will be awarded in May 2017.