Cooperative Extension Service Communications and Technology Department 3354 1000 E. University Ave. Laramie, WY 82071 (307) 766-2540 • fax (307) 766-3998 • www.uwyo.edu

 

For Immediate Release

 

Contact: Robert Waggener, Editor

Phone: (307) 766-3571

E-mail: robertw@uwyo.edu

 

Date: Jan. 10, 2006

WBCIA student scholarship deadline Feb. 4

The Wyoming Beef Cattle Improvement Association will again fund up to three $1,000 scholarships and a $1,500 internship for Wyoming resident students attending either the University of Wyoming or a community college in the state.

Wyoming students attending professional programs outside of the state, such as veterinary school, are also eligible.

Scholarships and the internship award are for the 2006-2007 academic year. The application deadline is Feb. 4.

“The WBCIA believes strongly in supporting the beef industry in the state and also in investing in the future of the industry through its scholarship program,” said WBCIA Secretary Steve Paisley, an assistant professor and cooperative extension beef cattle specialist in the University of Wyoming College of Agriculture’s Department of Animal Science.

“The scholarships, awarded annually, are one of the most important programs for the WBCIA,” Paisley said.

Applicants must have completed one year of post-high school education by the start of the fall 2006 school term. They need to be enrolled in a program associated with agriculture, and a minimum grade-point average of 2.70 is required.

“A WBCIA committee will evaluate applications based on academic achievement, a demonstrated personal commitment to some aspect of the beef industry, potential to advance the science associated with the beef industry and an ability to articulate and be a positive spokesperson for the industry,” Paisley said.

Selections will be finalized by March 1.

Additional scholarship information can be accessed at the association’s Web site at www.wbcia.org or by calling Paisley at (307) 766-5541.

The WBCIA was formed in 1984 by a group of beef cattle producers and several UW Cooperative Extension Service personnel to maintain and improve the accuracy and efficiency of beef cattle production by systematic breeding, selection and management with emphasis placed on selection criteria for traits of economic importance.

Among its other goals are to encourage education, research and development relative to beef cattle improvement and to cooperate with other associations for the promotion of the industry. The WBCIA annually conducts bull and feedlot tests, and it hosts a bull sale and beef symposium.

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