Community First Bank in Rosholt and Stevens Point has become the first bank in Wisconsin to pledge to award scholarships to local high school students through the Community Bankers Scholarship Program.
The bank introduced the program during a ceremony Friday, Aug. 31, at the bank in Rosholt.
Throughout the next 30 years, Community First Bank plans to award two annual scholarships, one to a Stevens Point area senior and one to a Rosholt senior, to pursue post-secondary education.
J.G. Rosholt of Community First Bank said the program's goal is to help banks throughout the nation award a combined total of more than $1 billion in scholarships during the next 30 years.
"The decision to participate was fairly easy," he said. "It provides money to leaders."
Rosholt said students will be eligible for $1,000 scholarships for four years, so the bank would be funding eight scholarships per year once the program has been in operation for four years.
The Stevens Point area scholarship will be administered by the Community Foundation of Portage County, he said, and the Rosholt scholarship will be administered by the Rosholt Education Foundation. The bank had been awarding $500 scholarships in Rosholt but that will increase to $1,000 now, he said.
"This is exciting to do that," said Kathleen Martinsen, superintendent of schools in Rosholt. "We have seen scholarships grow over the last several years."