URBANDALE, Iowa - The Iowa Soybean Association (ISA) is looking for qualified candidates to apply for its agriculture scholarships. ISA will award up to $20,000 this year through the ISA Ag Scholarship Program; it will be presented in as many as ten $2,000 scholarships to capable high school seniors pursuing a degree in agriculture or an agriculture-related field.

“Being able to provide graduating high school students with these scholarships shows that the Iowa Soybean Association is looking at providing agriculture a continuing pool of potential young leaders,” says Curt Sindergard, ISA president. “Our ability to increase these scholarships over the last few years also shows that those individuals and companies who help support our scholarship fund believe in the future of agriculture in Iowa.”

High school seniors interested in applying for an ISA scholarship must be Iowa residents and be attending any ag-related college or university. Other criteria include: an accumulated GPA of at least 3.0, community involvement, leadership, future plans in agriculture, a short essay regarding the student’s role in the future of agriculture, and three letters of recommendation. Preference will be given to those applicants whose parents or grandparents are or become ISA members.

Those students who would like to apply should contact their guidance counselors for more information or log on to ISA’s Web site at www.iasoybeans.com for a downloadable scholarship application and complete list of criteria.

ISA Ag Scholarship Program applications must be postmarked no later than March 1, 2008. Scholarship winners will be announced April 15, 2008.

Completed applications can be mailed to Mary Whitcomb, Iowa Soybean Association, 4554 114th St., Urbandale, IA 50322-5410.

For more information about the Iowa Soybean Association Ag Scholarship Program, please call Mary Whitcomb at the ISA office at 800-383-1423.