Local attends West Point SLS

Trevor S. Dutton of Rydal, Ga., and upcoming senior at Gordon Central High School, was selected to be among 1,100 attendees at West Point’s prestigious Summer Leaders Seminar (SLS).

More than 4,000 juniors nationwide applied to SLS, which offers otustnading high chool juniors the opportunity to experience life at West Point. SLS attendees live in the cadet barracks (dormitories), eat in the Cadet Mess and participate in academic leadership, athletic and military workshops. The one-week seminars are designed to help juniors with their college selection process while giving them an idea of the importance of leadership and sound decision making in their education, careers and lives in general.

All SLS attendees participate in virtual-reality war simulation, military and physical fitness training; each student selects three of the 15 workshops offered: leadership and ethics, civil and mechanical engineering, systems engineering, history, physics, electrical engineering, human behavior, social sciences, geography/ environmental sciences, chemistry, mathematics, legal trial, computer applications and programming, foreign language and English.

The U.S. Military Academy at West Point is a four-year, co-educational, federally funded undergraduate college located 50 miles north of new York City. The world’s preeminent leader development institution, it was founded in 1802 as America’s first college of engineering. Since then, West Point has grown in size and stature but remains committed to the task of producing commissioned leaders of character for America’s Army.

Cronon earns BK scholarship

Haley Cronon, a 2010 graduate of Calhoun High School, is one of 31 Georgia students who have been awarded scholarships through the Burger King Scholars Program.

Cronon plans to use the $1,000 scholarship as she heads to Georgia Southern University this fall.

The Have It Your Way Foundation awarded $1.2 million in scholarships to a total of 1,092 students nationwide as part of the 10th annual Burger King Scholars Program. Thirty-one high school seniors from Georgia have received $1,000 scholarship awards in recognition of their outstanding academic achievement, along with other academic and community involvement criteria.

Created in memory of Burger King co-founder, James W. McLamore, the Burger King Scholars Program has awarded a total of 13,812 scholarships, representing more than $14 million since the program’s inception in 2000.

“Today, it’s more important than ever that young people prepare for a challenging future,” said Ivette Diaz, executive director of the Have It Your Way Foundation. “The Burger King Scholars Program continues to offer financial support in these fast-changing times, so that these committed and accomplished students can continue their education and pursuit of successful careers.”

Scholarship awards help graduates offset the cost of attending college or a post-secondary vocational/technical school.

Graduating seniors throughout the United States, Puerto Rico and Canada are eligible for the scholarships. Recipients are selected based on their grade point average, work experience, financial need, extracurricular activities and community service.

Scholarship funds come directly from the Have It Your Way Foundation, company and franchise-owned Burger King restaurants throughout the country that host a variety of fundraising activities in order to generate funds for scholarships each year.

For more information on the program, including instructions for obtaining scholarship applications for 2011, visit www.haveityourwayfoundation.org.

Dodd receives Chick-fil-A scholarship

Calhoun resident Jerome H. Dodd has been awarded the $1,000 Chick-fil-A leadership scholarship, bringing the total amount of team member scholarships awarded to more than $26 million.

Dodd was nominated by Jonathan Purser, operator of Chick-fil-A of Calhoun. The Chick-fil-A leadership scholarship program provides assistance to restaurant employees who want to further their education.

“The program recognizes employees who have acquired the leadership qualities and skills necessary to be successful in life while providing an additional incentive for our employees to remain dedicated and work hard,” said Purser. “Jerome is being recognized for demonstrating abilities and potential to accomplish great things.”

In addition, Dodd will be eligible for Chick-fil-A’s S. Truett Cathy Scholar Award, which provides additional $1,000 scholarships to the top 25 Chick-fil-A leadership scholarship recipients each year.