Chilton Area Community Foundation Linda L. Schneider Scholarship

Background:

Linda L. Schneider established this scholarship fund to support the protection and conservation of wildlife, natural resources, and the environment in the hopes that future generations would have the opportunity to hear a wolf howl, see a grizzly bear catch a salmon in fresh water, and observe the aerobatic performance of the bald eagle overhead. Growing up in Chilton inspired Linda and she kept childhood nature journals in spiral notebooks. In 1974, she graduated in the top 10 of her class from Chilton High School. Four years later, Linda graduated Magna cum Laude from UW Whitewater with a degree in Social Work. For 34 years, she worked with developmentally disabled and autistic adults in Wisconsin and Colorado. Throughout her career, she remained a strong supporter for preserving wildlife and their habitats. She loved nature, the outdoors, hiking, camping, and gardening, which includes a butterfly garden that has attracted monarchs, painted ladies, swallowtails and other species of butterflies. Due to kidney and congestive heart failure, Linda retired at the age of 56. She continued to be an advocate for persons with special needs, wildlife, and the environment until her passing in August 2018. She wrote numerous articles for various magazines, including Birds and Blooms, Country, and Ranger Rick, a children’s nature magazine published by the National Wildlife Federation. It is Linda’s hope that this scholarship fund will make a difference for students pursuing a degree in wildlife ecology, environmental sciences, or related fields.

Eligibility: (taken into consideration to determine recipients)

• Graduating seniors from the following Calumet County High Schools: o Brillion High School o Chilton High School o Hilbert High School o Kiel High School o New Holstein High School o Stockbridge High School • Planning to attend a 4-year college or university as a part-time or full-time student • Majoring in a field of study focused on wildlife ecology and conservation, or related environmental sciences • High-achieving, detail-oriented students

Award Amount:

One non-renewable $500 scholarship award for cost of attendance, payable for the first semester of college.

Selection:

Recipients will be recommended in the spring by the Community Foundation Scholarship Selection Committee per the eligibility criteria.

Collecting the Award & Payment Procedure:

Recipients must fill out and submit Scholarship Acceptance Form and Scholarship Verification Form through the Scholarship Portal (https://www.grantinterface.com/Home/Logon?urlkey=cffvrscholar). Recipients are required to provide supporting documents as instructed in the Scholarship Verification Form, such as class registration/list with credits listed, proof of major, grade transcript, etc. After approval of online Scholarship Verification Form, the scholarship check will be paid directly to the school the recipient will be attending. The Community Foundation communicates with students via email; it is the student’s responsibility to keep their Scholarship Portal account updated with their current email address.

Loss of Eligibility: Failure to register as a part-time or full-time student for the first semester of the freshman year of college and majoring in a field of study focused on wildlife ecology and conservation; or related environmental sciences.

Further Information:

• Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region o Website www.cffoxvalley.org/scholarships/ o Email scholarships@cffoxvalley.org o Phone 920.702.7629