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This year the rodeo plans to award more than $14.7 million to a total of 644 graduating high school seniors from the region.
Before stepping into her first class at Texas A&M University, Kenzie Scanlon was awarded a $20,000 scholarship from the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.
She heard about the scholarship opportunity through a guidance counselor at her high school and was encouraged to apply. Now Scanlon, a freshman at A&M, calls her 2024 award life-changing.
“It meant that I got to go to school debt-free,” she said. “I am a first-generation college student. I come from a very poor family, so going to college was always something that I wanted to do but never thought I could because of how expensive it was. My parents wouldn’t be able to pay for it.”
The annual scholarships awarded by the Houston rodeo, which promotes agriculture through education and entertainment, could be considered among the greatest outcomes of the three-week event. Scanlon received one of the 800-plus scholarships awarded last year, and this year the rodeo plans to award more than $14.7 million to a total of 644 graduating seniors from the region.
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Jamie Voskamp, senior manager of the scholarship program, said more than 40% of the scholarship recipients will be first-generation college students.
“Seeing them go and pursue their dreams is so amazing,” Voskamp said.
The year-round endeavor is Voskamp’s pride and joy, with her noting that she can help students reach their next milestone in life. Voskamp said the program tracks students and shared data, detailing that 80% of scholarship recipients graduate high school, which is 20% higher than the national average.
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There are 2,250 active students who received scholarships from the rodeo program, according to Voskamp.
After receiving the initial scholarship, recipients can then apply for an achievement scholarship in their junior and senior years of college. They can receive $4,000 per semester for up to four semesters.
“What we found was a lot of students were going into school with a lot of funding upfront,” Voskamp said. “Then when they were hitting their junior year, a lot of that funding was used up and gone.”
Scanlon is studying global art, planning, design and construction and A&M, with hopes to pursue a career in architecture. She also wants to obtain a master’s degree and help future generations of students.
“My goal is to build K-12 schools,” Scanlon said.
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