IEC Memorial Scholarship Fund was established by unanimous vote of the Board of Directors of the Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives (AIEC) in January, 1994. It is designed to provide financial assistance to deserving students in the “electric cooperative family.”
The “driving force” behind creation of the fund was Thomas H. Moore, long-time Executive Vice President and General Manager of the AIEC. Mr. Moore, who retired in January, 1994, strongly believed that a fund and scholarship program should be established to provide a means by which cooperatives and individuals could honor deceased members of the electric cooperative family through memorial gifts. The scholarship program was re-named in honor of Mr. Moore after he passed away in 2008.
The scholarship program prospered under the leadership of Earl W. Struck, who succeeded Mr. Moore and served as President/CEO of the AIEC from 1994 to his retirement in 2006. Mr. Struck passed away in August 2007. The AIEC Board of Directors that month unanimously voted to honor Mr. Struck’s memory by naming the annual scholarship awarded to the son or daughter of an electric cooperative employee or director the “Earl W. Struck Memorial Scholarship.”
The Illinois Community College System Foundation (ICCSF) administers the IEC Memorial Scholarship Fund. Ten scholarships are awarded each year.
The “LaVern and Nola McEntire Lineworker’s Scholarship” was awarded for the first time in 2011. LaVern McEntire served as a co-op lineman for over 42 years. He and his wife, Nola, endowed this new scholarship to assist students in attending the lineworker’s school at Lincoln Land Community College in Springfield, IL. For eligibility requirements, please see the “LaVern and Nola McEntire Lineworker’s Scholarship Official Rules and Regulations.”
PLEASE NOTE: The remainder of this brochure deals with the other nine (i.e., non-lineworker) scholarships included in the Thomas H. Moore IEC Memorial Scholarship Program.
Each annual scholarship is now worth $2000. The scholarship must be used for educational costs, and the student must enter college within a year from the time the scholarship is issued.
Five scholarships will be awarded to students who are the sons or daughters of an electric cooperative member who resides in Illinois and is receiving service from the cooperative at the time the scholarship application is submitted.
A sixth scholarship – the Earl W. Struck Memorial Scholarship – will be awarded to a student who is the son or daughter of an electric cooperative employee or director who resides in Illinois.
A scholarship applicant is eligible for consideration in only one of the above two categories, and is eligible to apply through only one electric cooperative.
The applicant must be a high school senior who is planning to enroll in a full-time (at least 12 hours) undergraduate course of study at an accredited two-year or four-year college, university, or vocational/technical school in the United States.
Three scholarships will be awarded to a high school senior who will be enrolling full-time at a two-year Illinois community college. Sons and daughters of electric cooperative members, employees and directors who reside in Illinois are eligible to apply.
For full eligibility requirements, please see the “Thomas H. Moore IEC Memorial Scholarship Program Official Rules.”
Scholarships are awarded based on grade point average, college entrance test scores, work and volunteer experience, participation in school and community activities, biographical statement and knowledge of electric cooperatives, as demonstrated by a short essay.
To apply, a student must meet the required criteria and complete the scholarship application available from the local electric cooperative office. Each applicant is responsible for submitting all information required to apply for a scholarship and for returning the application to the local electric cooperative by the end of the year.
Checks should be mailed and made payable to:
“IEC Memorial Scholarship Fund/ICCSF”
ATTN: Lisa Brammer
P.O. Box 3787
Springfield, IL 62708
Memorial gifts should list the person in whose memory the gift is given. All contributions by individuals are tax-deductible.
Each year at your Annual Meeting in August, we draw three $500 scholarships. These scholarships are for the graduating class of that year. To be entered into the drawing, the student must be the son or daughter of a CECI member who resides in Illinois and is currently receiving electric service. Winners are expected to enroll full time (12 Credit Hours) in an undergraduate course of study at an accredited two- or four-year college, university, or vocational/technical school. Applications for the 2024 drawing must be submitted by August 16th to be entered in the drawing. The form can be downloaded here.