Children of members recognized for academic excellence, community involvement, and personal achievement.

Mid-Ohio Energy is pleased to recognize eight local students as winners of Mid-Ohio Energy Cooperative’s annual scholarship program. 

The annual scholarship program awarded a total of $11,000 to students whose parents and/or guardians are members of the co-op. Winners were selected based upon scholastic and community activities, academic achievements, course load, and in-person interviews. 

Hannah McKinniss of Ridgemont High School was announced as the overall winner of the “Children of Members” scholarship competition, earning a $2,000 scholarship. Hannah hopes to go on to study in the fields of agribusiness and agricultural communications.

As the top local winner, McKinniss will compete for additional scholarship money in the statewide competition, which features students representing 24 electric cooperatives in Ohio. 

Brailyn Thacker of Kenton High School was chosen as the winner of a special $1,000 Touchstone Energy Achievement scholarship. The scholarship is awarded to those pursuing a college education while displaying the values of integrity, accountability, innovation, and community.

Brailyn's letters of recommendation for the Touchstone Energy scholarship noted that her perseverance was inspiring, and praised her "Personal determination and accountability, which has helped her rise above," to serve as an example for school staff and classmates alike.

A great group: The future is bright for local students

"Our rural territory spans 22 school districts across parts of 10 counties," said Director of Marketing and Communications Brian Barger. "With so many great candidates, our judges had a really difficult decision to select and place our finalists this year. This group of students should be very proud of their accomplishments— academically as well as in their community involvement." 

Mid-Ohio Energy expresses sincere gratitude to each student who applied for the scholarships. The cooperative received many qualified applicants, which speaks highly of our local students and schools. 

We wish them all the best of luck, and can't wait to see the results of their academic pursuits as they graduate and go on to make up our future workforce.

We also thank scholarship judges Lyn Davis of Kenton and Demi Snider of Kenton for their time and dedication in judging the competition.