Wilson has ‘vision’ for Lawrence students
“My vision is to have enough people contribute to a scholarship so that every graduating student in this county would be able to go to college,” said Louisa resident Neil Wilson. “I believe our generation has no greater obligation than to help students reach their potential,”
This is the reason he has established a scholarship to help graduating Lawrence County High School students attend ACTC.
The Susan Wilson Memorial Scholarship Fund is named for Wilson’s late wife Susan M. Wilson who passed away in June 2016.
“Susan and I always valued education very highly, and I think sometimes our students who are getting ready to graduate just need an extra bit of encouragement to go on to college,” Wilson said. “When I council students, I always tell them there are three things that will bring them success. These are education, education and education.”
A retired American Electric Power engineer, Wilson and his wife came to Louisa in 1973 when he accepted a position at Kentucky Power Company’s Big Sandy Plant. He worked there for 37 years while his wife worked for a number of coal companies and an accounting firm.
“Each of us greatly appreciated the education that we received and that allowed us to live a fulfilling life,” he said. “We both graduated from West Virginia Tech in Montgomery, WV. My wife’s degree was in Secretarial Studies and my degree was in Electrical Engineering. I went on to become a licensed professional engineer and received an MBA from Morehead State University.”
“We felt that education was important to us and was important for others.” Wilson’s support of education has included working with Lawrence County school students in functions such as Project Lead the Way and science fairs.
“I have been privileged to help in the school system when anything would become available. We have a great school system in the county, and sometimes students need a push to realize their full potential as college students,” Wilson said.
He has also supported ACTC as a judge in the recent ACTC/FIVCO Science Fair and as an advisor for ACTC’s Applied Process Technology Program.
“ACTC is a perfect choice for students who have not committed to another college,” he said. “ACTC is local so they have the experience of studying on the college level while still be able to live at home. The college has very reasonable tuition and fees, and students can look at a variety of programs they might not have considered before.”
Wilson’s passion for education was translated into scholarship support when he talked with a young person who was going to ACTC. “My first thought was great, but how could I help? The idea occurred that since I could not help with the classes, I could at least pay for tuition and fees. So I did that anonymously, and I felt so good about it I decided to set up a scholarship to help other students.”
“I initially contributed $10,000 on a Friday, and I did not sleep well that weekend. I think God was telling me I could do better than that, so I went back the next Monday and contributed another $10,000. Sure enough, I sleep better now,” he said.
Wilson hopes that other people will follow his example in supporting scholarships. “The scholarship fund is a memorial to Susan and a way to help young people in her name,” he said.” If people who know me see my name attached to a scholarship, I hope they will say, ‘if that tight wad can set this up, we can contribute too.’”
The Susan Wilson scholarship is for Lawrence County High School graduates with a 2.5 or higher GPA. April 1 is the priority deadline for to apply for a fall 2017 scholarship. When applying for a scholarship, students also need to fill out an ACTC application and the FAFSA.
For more scholarship information, visit ashland.kctcs.edu and click on Costs and Financial Aid. For details on establishing scholarships, contact ACTC Director of Advancement Brooke Seasor at: brooke.seasor@kctcs.edu or call 606-326-2092.
Gayle Fritz
PR Coordinator
Ashland Community and Technical College
606.326.2134
Gayle.fritz@kctcs.edu
