Scholarship Program

Help Support The Next Generation Of Business Men & Women Ray Kujawinski Memorial Scholarship & Nancy Fike Memorial Scholarship History

Although the records are incomplete, it appears that the Chamber Scholarship began before 1989. At that time, the Lazy Days Festival funded 2 -$500 scholarships. After a short hiatus because of funding, Chamber President Ray Kujawinski reinstated the Scholarship program in 1991. To honor his work in this reinstatement, the scholarship was named for him.

In 1996, the first Scholarship Committee was created to develop the criteria and choose the recipients. That committee voted to donate all Expo Raffle funds to the Scholarship Fund. Three – $500 scholarships were awarded – 1 to a Business Major, 2 to other majors, 2.7 GPA or better; based on financial need. The required essay -was “What are your professional goals for the next 5 years?”

From 2001-2018, all criteria basically remained the same, except for a changing essay title. In 2001 the Chamber Board of Directors decided to add an additional scholarship – the Nancy Fike Memorial Scholarship to honor her work in the Nordonia Hills School System. The Chamber award 1 – $250 – 500 scholarship to help with escalating college-related costs. The committee has also decided to put less emphasis on financial needs and more emphasis on the applicant’s work experience while in high school.

Fast forward  to 2022 Chamber President, Bissler was elected to have the first annual end of Summer Luau. Through all of the member’s hard work and dedication, the Chamber was able to raise $3,000 forthe scholarship funds. The ‘22 Board of Directors made a few additional changes to the application process. Applicants were to tell us how a local business or community member inspired them or maybe impacted their career direction. The committee wanted to challenge the students a little and make it relevant to our current times, so we also requested the applications to be in video format. Two students were awarded scholarships and they were voted on by the ‘22 Scholarship Committee.

We will be having our 3nd annual Fundraising End of Summer Luau on August 17th and will continue to grow the scholarship fund through our local events.

Our commitment to helping local students and raising awareness about the importance of education has never been stronger.

Join us in celebrating the future of our community by supporting the Nordonia Hills Chamber of Commerce’s scholarship fund.