By Julie Tomascik
Editor

Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) continues to invest in youth, devoting large amounts of money and time to help students develop leadership skills and a future in agriculture. That investment comes through scholarships at the state and county levels.

Each year, TFB awards more than $235,000 in scholarships, and over $590,000 in scholarships is provided through county Farm Bureaus.

“Farm Bureau’s scholarship program offers a variety of scholarships for high school seniors, enrolled college students, students pursuing technical degrees and veterinary students,” McKenna Bush, TFB youth outreach coordinator, said. “These scholarships and awards are another way that TFB and county Farm Bureaus invest in the future of our communities, state and agriculture.”

There are four high school scholarships available from the state’s largest general farm and ranch organization: Memorial/Honorary and District Scholarships, Young Farmer & Rancher Scholarship and the Dick Mitchell Memorial Scholarship.

Enrolled college students can apply for four scholarships at the state level: Young Farmer & Rancher Scholarships for Enrolled College Students, S.M. True Jr. Agricultural Scholar Award, Mia Balko Student Teaching Scholarship and the Rural Veterinary Scholarship.

Instructions for scholarship applications
All scholarships require the student to be part of a TFB member-family to apply, and membership must be maintained for the duration of the scholarship.

The deadline to apply and submit completed 2024 scholarship applications online is March 1, 2024 before midnight.

Visit texasfarmbureau.org/scholarships for scholarship details and a link to the applications.

Email youthactivities@txfb.org or call 254-751-2258 with questions.

Scholarships for High School Seniors
Dick Mitchell Scholarship
This $1,000 scholarship is awarded to one high school senior who completed the Thrive Event through TFB’s Student Success Series in August 2023.

Young Farmer & Rancher Scholarship
High school seniors pursuing a degree in agriculture are eligible for TFB’s Young Farmer & Rancher scholarship.

Each of TFB’s 13 districts will award one $1,000 scholarship.

Memorial/Honorary and District Scholarships

In each of the 13 TFB districts, one student will be awarded a $1,500 scholarship.

Three students from each district also will be awarded a $1,000 scholarship.

Scholarships for Enrolled College Students
Young Farmer & Rancher Enrolled Scholarship
The Young Farmer & Rancher Enrolled Scholarship is for students already in college pursuing undergraduate degrees. Applicants must have completed a minimum of 45 credit hours and a GPA of 2.5 or higher to qualify. Applicants must also intend to pursue a career in agriculture.

Three $2,000 Young Farmer & Rancher Enrolled scholarships will be awarded.

Mia Balko Student Teaching Scholarship
This scholarship was renamed in honor of the late Mia Balko, who was the associate director of youth outreach which oversees the scholarship program for TFB. Prior to joining TFB, Balko was an agricultural science teacher for many years.

Four senior agricultural education students will receive the Fall 2024 Mia Balko Student Teaching Scholarship.

The scholarships, valued at $1,500 each, aim to help college students cover expenses during their semester of off-campus student teaching.

A second application process will open later this year for those student teaching in spring 2025.

S.M. True Jr. Agricultural Scholar Award
To acknowledge former TFB President S.M. True Jr., a $20,000 scholarship was established for college students enrolled in an undergraduate degree program with at least 60 hours of college credit and declared agriculture as their major.

To be eligible for the scholarship, students must be a Farm Bureau member-family for at least three years at the time of application. Applicants must submit a completed application and two letters of recommendation—one from the county Farm Bureau president and one from the dean or head of the agricultural department of the applicant’s college or university.

Students are encouraged to apply at the end of their sophomore year for TFB’s most prestigious scholarship.

Rural Veterinary Scholarship
The Rural Veterinary Scholarship aims to help more veterinarians pursue careers in rural communities. Four scholarships valued at $10,000 each will be awarded.

Applicants must be a second- or third-year veterinarian student at Texas A&M University or Texas Tech University with a GPA of 2.5 or higher. The applicant must also plan to enter a rural and/or food animal practice in Texas after graduation.

TSTC Scholarships
TFB makes scholarship funds available annually through Texas State Technical College (TSTC). There are $50,000 in scholarships available to first year and enrolled students attending TSTC.

Forty $1,000 scholarships are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis through the Texan Success Scholarship.

Another $10,000 is available through the “helping hands” scholarship, which is meant to help students with unexpected costs that are not usually covered by traditional scholarships.

The link to the TSTC scholarship applications can be found on TFB’s scholarship page at texasfarmbureau.org/scholarships. Students will need to follow up with their enrollment coach after submitting the online form to determine if they received a scholarship.