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Updated: September 5, 2025 @ 6:32 pm
South Central College student Arianna Hansen, left, awaits her turn to cross the stage Friday at the school’s North Mankato campus scholarship appreciation luncheon.Ā
Abigail Osness was awarded two scholarships Friday.Ā
Marcella Sendejo, scholarship recipient beams at Friday’s award ceremony.Ā
South Central College student Arianna Hansen, left, awaits her turn to cross the stage Friday at the school’s North Mankato campus scholarship appreciation luncheon.Ā
Abigail Osness was awarded two scholarships Friday.Ā
Marcella Sendejo, scholarship recipient beams at Friday’s award ceremony.Ā
NORTH MANKATO ā A student who will study Braille technologies, a woman in male dominated automotive engineering and students who need gas money were among the 354 who received scholarships Friday at South Central College.Ā
The college’s foundation distributed $425,000 in scholarships made possible through donations from businesses, organizations and individuals.
āTheir support allows us to invest in students who are working hard to build brighter futures for themselves and our communities,ā said Erin Aanenson, executive director of South Central College Foundation.
The recipients held their scholarship certificates Friday while posing for photos in front of family members, fellow students, faculty and donors.Ā
Awards ranged from full rides covering the costs of everything necessary for a student to pursue his/her studies to amounts that are enough to provide gas money for those who commute to classes.
Irene Turas is one of 24 students selected for BENCO Electric scholarships. The $1,000 award is the first SCC scholarship for Turas who lived in Nigeria before moving to The Netherlands. International students have restrictions on being employed while enrolled in courses, she said.
“I’m very grateful for the scholarship. I will use it for tuition and other things I need for my studies,” she said.
Cleveland High School graduate Abigail Osness, 19, was awarded two scholarships totaling $1,500 to help with her automotive classes. She has enrolled in classes focusing on hydraulics and transmissions and plans to use the scholarships to study electrical systems.
Automotives is a male-dominated field; however, Osness recently found out at least two of her SCC classmates are women.
“Last year, I was the only girl in the program,” she said.
Arianna Hansen, 21, of Owatonna, received assistance from a staffer as she crossed the stage to accept her financial award Friday. Hansen received her first academic scholarship during SCC’s ceremony Friday but there were no stage jitters for her. She’s quite comfortable in front of crowds.
“Last year, I spoke at the United Nations.”
Hansen traveled to Vienna to participate in a youth conference where she was a panelist who answered questions about Braille technology and her experiences as a student in the United States.
“I mentioned SCC,” she said.
AĀ person with low vision, she is taking general courses in preparation for a career in either teaching Braille or improving the reading-and-writing program for people who are blind.
Charles Kotasek, 19, of rural Le Sueur, is one of 38 Gene Haas CNC scholarship winners. Kotasek just started his second year in the machining program at SCC. Besides taking classes in running cutting tools such as lathes and mills, he has a jobā as well as regular gigs playing in the band Pocket Lounge.
“I think I will using about half of the (scholarship) money for gas,” Kotasek said.
Each year, the SCC Foundation awards scholarships based on a variety of criteria including program area, work experience, academic achievement, community involvement, extracurricular activities, and financial need.
Aaenson said the SCC Foundation has funding set aside for emergency situations that affect students’ lives. The funding is made available throughout the year.
“If a student has a crisis ā needs to see a doctor or has a car that broke down ā we have emergency scholarships,” said Aasenson.
The foundation plans a second scholarship ceremony Sept. 11 for students attending classes on SCC’s Faribault campus.
SCC is a comprehensive community and technical college that is part of the Minnesota State system with campuses in Faribault and North Mankato. South Central College Foundation is a nonprofit organization that obtains, manages and allocates contributions to support SCC.
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