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NFIB YEF and Sam’s Club Announce Young Entrepreneur Awards


WEBWIRE

The National Federation of Independent Business Young Entrepreneur Foundation in partnership with Sam’s Club announced the recipients of the NFIB/Sam’s Club Young Entrepreneur Awards, a scholarship program designed to reward and encourage entrepreneurial talents among high school students. The award recipients will attend the university, college, community college or vocational/technical institute of their choice with $2,000 in tuition assistance from the NFIB Young Entrepreneur Foundation.

The NFIB Young Entrepreneur Awards program, which encourages students to consider a career in small business, made its debut in 2003 when it awarded a total of 110 scholarships nationwide. This year over 400 scholarships will be awarded, thanks to the financial support from numerous small business leaders, corporate and foundation supporters. This year’s major corporate sponsors are Visa, The McKelvey Foundation and Sam’s Club.

“We are overjoyed by the tremendous amount of interest in our scholarship program. This year more than 8,000 students applied to receive a NFIB YEF Award, demonstrating that today’s youth embody the entrepreneurial spirit and seek a place in tomorrow’s free enterprise system,” said Don V. Cogman, chair, NFIB Young Entrepreneur Foundation Board of Directors. “NFIB congratulates this year’s winners for their tremendous accomplishments and hopes the scholarships will assist these young entrepreneurs as they continue on their paths towards successful futures.”

This is the first year Sam’s Club has participated as a sponsor in the NFIB YEF Awards program. The Wal-Mart Foundation on behalf of Sam’s Club contributed $30,000 to the scholarship program. Sam’s Club supports small business by lowering the cost of doing business everyday for millions of entrepreneurs and offers services to help them better manage their operations.

“The opportunity to help these students is an investment in our future, and it’s rewarding to know we can play a role in supporting them and helping them achieve their goals,” said Catherine Corely, vice president, marketing at Sam’s Club.

To earn a scholarship, students were required to write an essay describing their entrepreneurial endeavors and future goals. Standardized test scores, GPA, and class rank were also considered. NFIB members around the country nominated applicants for the Young Entrepreneur Awards.

NFIB/Sam’s Club Young Entrepreneur Award recipients are:

* Branden Forst, Sitka High School, Sitka, Alaska
* Michael Transon, Horizon High School, Phoenix, Ariz.
* Erik Henry, Monarch High School, Louisville, Colo.
* Cassandra McKinney, Hillcrest High School, Idaho Falls, Idaho
* Jason Patrick, Northwood High School, Wheaton, Md.
* Blaine Beck, Woodbury Senior High School, Woodbury, Minn.
* Geoff Hamrick, Cardinal Gibbons High School, Raleigh, N.C.
* Rachel Zahradka, Adams-Edmore Public School, Lawton, N.D.
* Alexandria Fewell, Brookings Harbor High School, Brookings, Ore.
* Kyle Markum, Coffee Co. Central High School, Manchester, Tenn.
* Hillary White, Amarillo High School, Amarillo, Texas
* Kelsey McCabe, Lafayette High School, Williamsburg, Va.
* Nathan Stymiest, Oconto Falls High School, Oconto Falls, Wis.



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