The Cronic Automotive Group is encouraging area high school seniors to apply for one of the 1,100 scholarships to be awarded as part of the Buick Achievers Program.
The $4.5 million effort is being funded by the General Motors Foundation and includes 100 full scholarships (up to $25,000 a year) for students who major in science, technology, engineering or mathematics and 1,000 renewable scholarships of $2,000 each in design, marketing and business administration.
“At Cronic, we believe that those of us in business must be actively involved in our community and in the inspiration of the young people who will become the next generation of leaders,” said Wanda Cronic Howell, president of the Cronic Automotive Group, which includes Cronic Chevrolet, Cronic Buick GMC Chrysler Jeep Dodge RAM, and Cronic Nissan. “Higher education is getting more expensive every year and we know that every dollar makes a difference to students paying college tuition.”
“According to figures released by the College Board, tuition is rising at least six percent a year,” Howell said. “This is making it increasingly difficult for students to finance their education.”
“The Buick Achievers Scholarship Program was developed to help address this need,” Howell added. “I hope every eligible student in griffin, Spalding County and the surrounding counties will apply for this scholarship – and I hope they win this assistance in building their future.”
Howell, a former college teacher herself, has long been a champion of education at all levels.
In 2000, she was one of 11 automobile dealers in the United States and Europe to receive the prestigious Dealer Education Award from Northwood University. The honor was given in recognition of her individual contributions and effort to improve education at all levels.”
To be eligible for the scholarships, area students must be high school seniors or high school graduates who will be first time college students in Fall 2011. They must plan to enroll in a full-time undergraduate study at an accredited four-year college or university for the entire 2011-2012 academic year. Applicants must be U.S. citizens and permanent residents of the United States.
Information and applications are available at www.buickachievers.com. Applications will be accepted until Mar. 31, 2011 and the scholarships will be awarded for the 2011-2012 academic year.
The Buick Achievers Program is the latest example of the GM Foundation educational initiatives which invest in the youth of America. The GM Foundation has provided more than $26 million in education-related initiatives since 2005.
Since its inception in 1976, the GM Foundation has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to deserving American charities, educational organizations and to disaster relief efforts around the world.
Cronic Chevrolet was founded by the late J.A. Cronic in 1975 and the other lines were added later.
Howell has been a dealer at Cronic Buick GMC Chrysler Jeep Dodge RAM since it opened in 1996. She became the dealer at Cronic Chevrolet and Cronic Nissan upon the death of her father in 2003.
