Delmarva Chicken Association awards scholarships to five Delaware, Maryland students

Delaware State News
Posted 7/5/21

GEORGETOWN — Five students pursuing college and graduate studies connected to careers in Delmarva’s chicken industry have been awarded scholarships totaling $11,000 from the Delmarva Chicken Association. Four of the recipients are enrolled in undergraduate programs, and one graduate student was also awarded a scholarship.

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Delmarva Chicken Association awards scholarships to five Delaware, Maryland students

Posted

GEORGETOWN — Five students pursuing college and graduate studies connected to careers in Delmarva’s chicken industry have been awarded scholarships totaling $11,000 from the Delmarva Chicken Association. Four of the recipients are enrolled in undergraduate programs, and one graduate student was also awarded a scholarship.

The following students will receive scholarships:

  • Trinity Ranshaw of Harrington graduated from Lake Forest High School this spring and will attend the University of Delaware in the fall. Ms. Ranshaw has been a part of Future Farmers of America since middle school and has served on the Delaware State Fair Junior Board. Her career goal is to become a high school teacher who can drive enthusiasm about agriculture among her students.
  • Nicholas Francesconi of Centreville, Maryland, is a 2021 Queen Anne’s County High School graduate starting at Miami University in Ohio this fall. Mr. Francesconi plans to earn a degree in robotics engineering in the university’s College of Engineering and Computing and told DCA’s Scholarship Committee he wants to help Delmarva’s chicken companies, farmers and allied businesses use robotics and automation to solve challenges. He earned straight As throughout his high school years and has been involved in student government, band and theater.
  • Abigail West of Frankford is a rising sophomore at West Virginia University majoring in agribusiness management. Coming from a fourth-generation farm family, Ms. West intends to use her college degree as a grain merchandiser — an important part of the chicken community, which on Delmarva purchases $1 billion in grain for feed per year. A WVU professor who recommended her for the scholarship said she has been able to overcome the challenges of starting college taking virtual classes during the COVID-19 pandemic and that she was impressed by her “professionalism, maturity and drive.”
  • Cole Statler of Millsboro is a rising junior at the University of Delaware focused on an engineering degree. Mr. Statler hopes to land a job improving and maintaining critical infrastructure and equipment in Delmarva’s chicken industry. A UD professor who recommended Mr. Statler for the scholarship called him a “diligent, conscientious student who is serious about his education.” Mr. Statler previously received DCA scholarships in 2019 and 2020.
  • Annette Kenney of Marion, Maryland, a graduate student at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, is nearing the end of her studies and has researched food safety issues and animal manure-amended soils on Delmarva, including the potential for fresh vegetable production with the application of various animal manures as soil amendments. Ms. Kenney has collaborated with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service in Somerset County during her time at UMES. She previously received DCA scholarships in 2018 and 2019.

Since 1985, DCA has awarded $161,000 to students pursuing chicken careers through its College Scholarship Program. The scholarships are funded by its College Scholarship Golf Tournament, taking place this year Sept. 27 at GlenRiddle Golf Club in Berlin, Maryland.

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