In 1986 Kevin Shannon, a local Butte businessman, started a scholarship club to support Butte High School and Butte Central High School students who plan to pursue higher education at Montana Tech. Since then, the Shannon Scholarship Fund has positively impacted nearly 370 students pursuing a post-secondary education at Montana Tech. The fund has given out over $175,000 in scholarships.
“The original committee was Kevin Shannon, Frank Gardner and myself,” noted Jean Peterson. “Kevin sent out a letter asking community members to give $5.00 to help support a Butte student pursuing their education at Montana Tech. The fund has since snowballed and the support has allowed us to give financial assistance to 17 students this year.”
“The Shannon Scholarship Fund continues to give outstanding students from Butte an opportunity to better their lives,” noted Joe McClafferty, Montana Tech Vice Chancellor for Advancement and University Relations and President of the Montana Tech Foundation. “This year's recipients represent a diverse group of degree majors. In four years, these students will be heading out into industry to solve real world problems. This fund is having and will continue to have a great impact on our community and university. Thank you to the scholarship committee and all those who contribute to the Kevin and Joan Shannon Fund.”
Peterson added, “Financial need is a big part of the criteria when selecting the scholarship recipients. We want to make sure that the Montana Tech freshmen receiving the scholarship can really benefit from the assistance.”
The fund awarded $14,500 dollars to 17 Butte students this year. Each recipient received a scholarship ranging from $500-$2,000. The 2014-2015 recipients are Rachel Banks, Jason Carr, Sean Doyle, Taylor Herzog, Patrick Kenney, Elena Kilmer, McKinley Kramer, Sammy McGree, Cole Reighard, Mariah Richardson, Kyra Roth, Madison Russell, Luke Stout, Brittany Tadday, Tayler Templin, Griffen Warner, and Chad Williams.
If you would like to play a part in this local scholarship effort and directly impact Butte kids, please contact Katelyn Dean, Alumni Development Officer, with the Montana Tech Foundation at 406-496-4271 or kdean@mtech.edu. You can also give on-line at http://foundation.mtech.edu/.