Wind Scholarship Program Opens for 2012 Scholarship Round

Are you a high-schooler looking to get into a cleantech field (wind energy, to be specific)?

You might want to check out the First Wind Scholarship program. First Wind, “an independent North American wind energy company exclusively focused on the development, financing, construction, ownership and operation of utility-scale wind energy projects in the United States,” just announced the opening of its 2012 scholarship program on Thursday.

The scholarship program, which is in its third year now, “will award 16 scholarships to qualified high school seniors in communities where the company currently has projects in operation or advanced stages of development.”

Locations will include communities in Hawaii, Maine, New York, Utah, Vermont, Washington, and Massachusetts (the state the Boston-based company calls home). A little more info from First Wind:

Qualified students enrolling in full-time degree programs focused on sciences or technology are invited to apply. First Wind Scholars recipients will be awarded a one-time $3,000 scholarship for one year. The company also awards one scholarship of $5,000, renewable for up to four years, to the year’s single most qualified applicant.

…

In order to be eligible for the scholarship, students need a GPA of at least 2.75 and must plan to enroll in full-time undergraduate study with a major in the sciences and/or engineering or technology. Applications are open and available online as of today, with all submissions due by February 15, 2012. Applications are evaluated on a number of factors, including academic performance, work experience, school and community activities and a 300-word essay. The First Wind Scholars recipients will be announced in May 2012.

High school seniors who attend a public or private high school near the following First Wind projects, whether operational or in an advanced stage of development, are eligible to apply. (Communities in parentheses are those with high schools where students are eligible for the scholarship.)

Hawaii

• Kaheawa Wind (Kahului, Lahaina, Kihei and Wailuku, Maui)
• Kahuku Wind (Laie and Kahuku, Oahu)
• Kawailoa Wind (Wahiawa, Waialua, Haleiwa and Sunset, Oahu)

Maine

• Bull Hill Wind (Eastbrook, Ellsworth, Hancock and Sullivan)
• Mars Hill Wind (Mars Hill)
• Oakfield Wind (Dyer Brook and Oakfield)
• Rollins Wind (Burlington, Lincoln, Lee, Mattawamkeag and Winn)
• Stetson Wind I & II (Danforth)

Massachusetts

• First Wind’s Headquarters (John D. O’Bryant School of Math and Science in Boston)

New York

• Cohocton Wind (Cohocton)
• Steel Winds (Lackawanna and Hamburg)

Utah

• Milford Wind I & II (the town of Milford, Beaver and Millard Counties)

Vermont

• Sheffield Wind (Sheffield and Barton)

Washington

• Palouse Wind (Garfield, Oakesdale, Rosalia, Saint John, Spangle and Tekoa)

Wind turbines via shutterstock