Scholarship

For Immediate Release

OOIDA Announces 2021 Scholarship Recipients

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association announced the recipients of this year’s Mary Johnston Scholarship. Since 1998, the fund has awarded more than $350 thousand to students who are the children, grandchildren or legal dependents of OOIDA members.

Five top scholars were chosen for this honor. To apply, the students were asked to submit a 500-word reflection essay on how a trucker has influenced their life, the way their educational goals resonate with their personalities and to entertain what changes they see occurring down the road that might improve the trucking industry.

Each year, one $2,000 scholarship and four $1,000 scholarships are awarded. An alternate is also named each year. The funds are transferred directly to the student’s selected institution and can be renewed for a total of four years. Jewell Cox, daughter of senior member Tony Cox of Elk Horn, Ky., is the recipient of a $2,000 scholarship. The four $1,000 scholarship winners are: Colten Ballard, Jayden Hensley, Garrett Bennett and Kaden de Jong. Meghan McClain was selected as an alternate.

Here are the winners for this year:

	Jewell is a 2020 graduate of Campbellsville High School and enrolled in Elizabethtown Community and Technical College, where she is majoring in business administration.
	Colten Ballard is the grandson of life member Kenneth Wilson of Amarillo, Texas. He was set to graduate from V.R. Eaton High School in June and plans to study to become an aviation mechanic at Tarrant Community College in Fort Worth, Texas.
	Jayden Hensley is the daughter of senior member Darrin Hensley of Osakis, Minn. She was set to graduate from Osakis Public High School in May. Jayden received a letter of acceptance from Minnesota State University, Moorhead, where she intends to major in business administration with an emphasis on management.
	Garrett Bennett is the son of life member Paul Bennett of Seneca, Kan. He was scheduled to graduate from Nemaha Central High School in May. He has received a letter of acceptance from Kansas State University Polytechnic where he intends to major in aviation.
	Kaden de Jong is the son of senior member Benjamin de Jong of McFall, Mo. Kaden was set to graduate from Pattonsburg High School in May. He received an acceptance letter from the University of Missouri, Columbia. Kaden plans to major in pre-veterinary medicine.
	Meghan McClain is the daughter of member Calvin McClain of Lake Lillian, Minn. She was scheduled to graduate from Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City High School in May. Meghan has received an acceptance letter from Southwest Minnesota State University, where she will pursue a career in graphic design.