The Gunnedah Shire Council Community Scholarship Fund provides an opportunity for young people from the Gunnedah Shire to apply for funding to help contribute towards the costs of studying a Certificate IV or higher in 2017.

As the associated costs of going off to university or TAFE outside of Gunnedah can be large, the Gunnedah Community Scholarship fund is designed to help ease this burden, with the hope that the recipients will use their education to benefit rural Australia.

“Even though our young people may leave Gunnedah to pursue further education, we should never lose sight of the importance of encouraging our youth to achieve their career goals. It’s especially heartening to know that many of these young people are returning to the region in later years, bringing their professional skills and experience and, in many cases, young families with them,” said Gunnedah Shire Deputy Mayor and GCSF Chairperson Gae Swain.

Scholarship winners can use the fund to study any subject they wish, and past winners have used it to study a wide variety of courses, from accounting to social work – anything beneficial to rural Australia, and especially Gunnedah Shire.
The scholarship is funded in partnership with local businesses and individuals, and the Gunnedah Community Fund continues to welcome all support, from both inside and outside the Gunnedah Shire. The fund always welcomes new benefactors who wish to further the education of local students.

“It is only through the corporate support and donations of the community that we are able to continue to offer scholarships to some of our young people undertaking their studies. Every dollar donated and raised for the fund goes directly towards our young people studying.
“The Gunnedah community has consistently demonstrated that it collectively wishes to promote such higher educational endeavors in the firm belief that in the longer term the rural sector, this community and the nation will benefit,” said Cr Swain.

The Scholarship was started in 2003 in order to encourage Gunnedah Shire students to engage in higher learning, in response to the troubling fact that this region has one of the lowest post-secondary education retention rates in Australia. Over the last thirteen years, the GCSF has distributed over $300,000 worth of funds to student of the Gunnedah Shire.

Applications opened on Monday the 19th of September 2016 and close on Monday the 19th of December 2016.

Successful applicants will be announced on Friday, the 20th of January 2017, with a presentation ceremony Tuesday the 31st of January 2017.

To apply, the application form can be accessed using the link below:
http://bit.ly/GSCCS17 

For those who wish to contribute to the future of Gunnedah and its students, donations can be delivered as cash or cheque (made out to “Gunnedah Community Scholarship Fund”), or paid via BPAY or BPOINT following the issue of a tax invoice. Alternatively, donations can be mailed to:
Gunnedah Shire Council
PO Box 63
GUNNEDAH NSW 2380

For any further information, please contact Sewa Emojong on (02) 6740 2100.
Media Contact: Tom Plevey (02) 6740 2100