April 3, 1998

Volume 85, Issue 12

By Betsy McAllister

Tank-tops, sandals, shorts and the senior countdown in the hall are all signs of spring around FHS. The atmosphere is relaxed and laid-back — all except those who are frantically working on scholarship applications, hoping to receive help paying for the years of college tuition ahead. 

Each spring, 15 to 20 students stop by the career center each day to check on scholarships, according to FHS counselor Craig Hunnicutt. Last year, more than $1.8 million dollars was offered to FHS seniors.

“There are literally thousands of dollars in local scholarship money that will be awarded between now and the end of the school year,” said Hunnicutt. “The biggest problem I face as the scholarship administrator is getting enough students to apply for each scholarship.”

Each year, FHS seniors apply for scholarships that are well known, such as the Coca-Cola and the Wal-Mart scholarships.  But there are many scholarships that seniors may not know much about, such as the J Ray Myers, Edith and Jennet Orr, Hawkins and the Matt Badger Memorial scholarships. These may not be well known among the seniors at FHS, but each gives students an opportunity to receive money for the upcoming school year.

• The J. Ray Myers scholarship is offered to FHS seniors who are interested in persuing a career in education. 1998 is the first year this scholarship has been offered.

• In 1993, the Edith and Jennet Orr Scholarship was created for high school seniors who have not received any other scholarships totaling more than $1,000. Each year, between 30 and 35 scholarships are awarded $1000. Jennet Orr was a retired teacher from the School District #5.   

• The Hawkins Memorial Scholarship is a first this year for Flathead Valley seniors. The scholarship offers 40 to 60 scholarships of $2500 each. The scholarship money comes from 90 perce,nt of the interest of the James H. and Flora Mae Hawkins estate, which totals about $4 million.

• Seniors can apply for the Matt Badger Memorial scholarship. One scholarship will be awarded this year only, for the amount of $1,000, in memory of Matt Badger, who died during his freshman year and would have graduated with the class of 1998.

“In doing the memorial scholarship, it is not to make a hero of the person, “ said Marsha Badger, Matt Badger’s mother. “It’s a way of remembering the person after they have died and say their life has made a difference.”  

Staffers awarded

By Dennis Meredith

As many students scramble to fill out scholarship applications, two staff members of The Arrow have used on their journalistic skills to bring home the cash. The Arrow’s editor-in-chief, senior Paul Wilson, was named as 1998’s Montana journalist of the year, and web site manager senior Ben Wood received a $10,000 scholarship to the Art Institute of Phoenix, Ariz.

Wilson’s award carries with it a $50 scholarship, but also makes him eligible for the national competition for a $2,000 scholarship.

Wood’s scholarship will pay half of the tuition for a course in web site administration he plans to take at the Art Institute.

Both students utilized their work for the paper to help in their competitions.

“The Arrow has been a means to use my internet skills on something other than a personal basis,” said Wood.  “It’s opened up a lot of new possibilities for me.”

But the payment for working for The Arrow isn’t just monetary.

“I came down to the Pub, it became the reason I woke up in the morning,” said Wilson. “It’s been the most useful thing I’ve done for the past two years.”

In the end, success may be the best reward.

“I like knowing that something I’ve worked so hard for has really paid off,” said Wilson. “It’s been more than worth it.”