National Pork Board scholarships due Oct.1

College junior or senior NJSA members -- don't forget to apply for the National Pork Board scholarships. More than $42,500 will be awarded to swine-industry focused students. The deadline is Oct. 1, 2010, and the online application is available at http://www.pork.org/Resources/1035/ScholarshipEntryForm.aspx.

Any specific questions should be directed to Lana Modlin at LModlin@pork.org or 515-223-2609. Don't wait to get started!

2010 National Pork Board Scholarship Guidelines
1. Applicants must be a junior or senior college student majoring in animal science or a related field and is planning to:
a) Pursue a career in swine production management or a related field, or
b) Attend graduate school and major in one of the following disciplines, with an emphasis on swine:
• Agriculture
• Agricultural Business
• Agriculture Engineering
• Agronomy
• Animal Breeding/Genetics/Genomics
• Animal Physiology
• Bioinformatics
• Environmental Science
• Environmental Physiology/Behavior
• Meat Science
• Nutrition
• Pork Safety / Food Technology
• Reproductive Physiology
• Veterinary Medicine (only if interest is swine production medicine)
• Related Fields

2. Scholarship applicants must be interested in pursuing a career in the pork industry. Preference will be given to applicants affiliated with the pork industry as:
• Members of a family currently in or associated with pork production,
• Members of a family associated with allied industry or the marketing segments of the pork industry.
• Active or past members of industry youth leadership development programs with emphasis on swine.
• Having had previous swine-specific internships.

3. A minimum of 19 scholarships will be awarded. The top applicant will be awarded a scholarship of $5,000 and a scholarship of $3,500 will be awarded to the first runner-up. All other scholarships awarded are $2,000.

4. Applications only will be considered if the online application form and all support materials are received by the deadline. The application deadline is October 1, 2010. Review these guidelines and the Application and Checklist page for the complete list of requirements.

An online application form is available at pork.org. Only individuals that complete the online application form and provide all support materials will be considered.

Support materials required for a complete application include:
• Two letters of support
• Academic transcripts

Letters of support must come from non-family members. Counselors, employers, mentors or industry professionals or other letter of support senders should mail letters of support directly to the National Pork Board at: Pork Industry Scholarships c/o Lana Modlin P.O. Box 9114 Des Moines, IA 50306. The envelope should clearly state whose application this letter supports. Please have the sender clearly write on the envelope:

For: Applicant Name

Transcripts require hard-copy, U.S. Postal Service submission. Applications will only be considered if the online application form is completed and all support materials are received by the deadline.

5. Successful applicants will be awarded one scholarship only. Family members of National Pork Board employees are not eligible. Application deadline is October 1, 2010.

Evaluation Criteria
Applicants will be evaluated by a selection committee including members of the Pork Checkoff’s science and technology committees, National Pork Board members, academia and allied industry representatives. Selection committee members will review and score each application independently and rank applicants based on the following criteria:
• Scholastic record, 1 to 10 points
• Youth and industry leadership activities, 1 to 10 points
• Interest/involvement in the swine industry, 1 to 15 points
• Graduate degree selected and/or prospective career path, 1 to 15 points

Applicant scores will be gathered by the National Pork Board and recipients will be announced in December 2010.