David Worthington, Founder and Board Chair of the Worthington Scholarship Foundation has announced a major expansion of the non-profit’s college scholarships. The Foundation plans to add an additional 17 high schools to the existing six in Knox, Waldo and Lincoln counties.

In Lincoln County those eligible high schools are Boothbay Region, Lincoln Academy, Medomak Valley and Wiscasset. Students receiving the scholarship must meet criteria based both on their academic merit (high school grades) and financial need. Students must attend one of these Maine colleges that have agreements with the foundation: Bates, Bowdoin, Colby, Husson, Maine Maritime, Thomas; any Maine community college and any college of the University of Maine system. Seniors graduating from a partner high school should visit their high school guidance office for application materials and deadlines.

Award amounts typically total $16,000 for a student attending a four-year college, distributed at $2,000 per semester. Community college students receive $2,000 per semester for the length of their program. Upon receiving an associates degree, a Worthington scholar can elect to continue on to obtain a bachelors. A mentoring component is also provided to each scholar to ensure their success.

Since 2016, almost 2.5 million dollars has been awarded to Midcoast area students. The new high schools are located in Lincoln, Hancock and Washington counties and will double the number of annual awards distributed from approximately 110 to about 220.

The Worthington Scholarship exists through generous support from David and Beverly Worthington, summer residents of Spruce Head Island and winter residents of Naples, Florida. Beverly is a retired corporate commercial pilot and David worked in the oil business.  The Worthingtons settled in the mid-coast in 1990 due to a family connection and began offering the Worthington Scholarship to Oceanside High School students in 2010. The Worthington

Scholarship Foundation (WSF) is a 501 (c)3 private operating foundation incorporated in the State of Maine with offices and staff located in Rockland, Maine.

First National Bank and Machias Savings Bank are the two latest partners supporting this large geographic expansion. They allow the Foundation to connect with and have access to high schools and students across a broad area of the state without having to add satellite offices or staff. These outstanding banking institutions have agreed to assist promoting awareness of Worthington scholarships in their communities, offering their many local branches as information centers where students can pick up information. Bank staff will even provide assistance completing forms, answer scholars’ questions and provide ability to Skype or Zoom from the bank’s branch to the scholars’ mentor in our main office.

For more information, please visit our website at www.worthingtonscholars.org, one of our partner organizations’ branches or call (207) 596-5800.