Select Sires Member Cooperative Announces $40,000 in Scholarships

August 9, 2024 – The Select Sires Member Cooperative (SSMC) Board of Directors wishes to recognize the efforts and aspirations of college students from member-owner families throughout our 27-state territory. To achieve this goal, the board of directors has selected 20 students that will receive scholarships for a collective total of $40,000 for the 2024-2025 academic year. “As a cooperative, SSMC believes in the cooperative principle of supporting our community. We live and work alongside our member-owners and want to support those students seeking to further their education, especially in agriculture,” says Chad Steinberger, board president.

The board of directors is pleased to recognize the top student in each of our districts.

The additional fifteen students received between $1,000 and $3,000 in award amounts. Students had to be part of an SSMC member-owner family and complete an online application, submit a video recording, and write an essay answering a question to apply. Jerry Lanting, chair of the board member engagement committee whose task it was to select recipients, said “It was exciting to have 40 applications for the inaugural scholarship program of such high caliber and varied skill sets. The time and effort some applicants put into their application was evident and you could see their passion for the agricultural industry." says Jerry. The committee was challenged to evaluate and score the applications based on academics, involvement, essay answers, video, and future plans. 

Select Sires Member Cooperative serves 27 states and the country of Mexico by delivering excellence in personalized service, quality offerings and cattle genetics. We look forward to these students' success and potentially having them as part of our cooperative in the future either as member-owners or as employees. Select Sires Member Cooperative operates as a true cooperative while striving to inspire the excellence of producers, herds, and our communities.