The Powers Merit Scholarship is intended to recognize demonstrated meritorious academic
achievement for six recent high school graduates. Each scholarship will be sufficient to
cover tuition and books at Isothermal Community College. Five of these will be selected
from the top 10% of the graduating class for each high school in Rutherford and Polk
counties with at least 100 graduating seniors. These scholarships will be offered to the
graduate with the highest earned GPA or highest score on the official GED test if a graduate
of the Isothermal Community College Adult High School program. If a student declines the
scholarship, it will be offered to the student with the next highest earned GPA until a
student is selected from the top 10% of the graduating class. In the event that two
students have the same GPA, the selection will be based on highest combined SAT scores. If
the GED test score is used, the graduate must have scored a minimum of 2750 on the test.
The sixth scholarship will be available to a graduate from any high school within Rutherford
and Polk counties with less than 100 graduating seniors. This scholarship will be offered to
the student with the highest combined score above the mean on the SAT test. If the
student selected declines the scholarship, it will be offered to the student with the next
highest combined SAT score until a student is selected from the top 10% of combined
scores for this population.

To apply for the Powers Merit Scholarship, the student must:

1. Be a graduate of a high school in Rutherford or Polk County within the academic year
within which the application is submitted.
2. If graduating from a high school with 100 or more graduates, the student must have
graduated within the top 10% academically of his/her class. Graduates of the Adult High
School program must have scored at least 2750 on the official GED test.
3. If graduating from a high school with less than 100 graduates, the student must complete
the SAT test prior to submitting the application.
4. Complete and submit an Isothermal Community College Powers Merit Scholarship
application by June 30 prior to the fall semester for which funding is sought.
5. Submit two letters of character and citizenship reference with the application.
(References may not be relatives of the applicant.)
6. Be a resident of Rutherford or Polk County. Legal county residency will be determined by
the same guidelines used to determine North Carolina state residency.
7. Possess a high school diploma reflecting post-high school academic preparation or
equivalent.
8. Be a full-time student at Isothermal Community College seeking a degree within an
academic program
9. May apply for any Powers Scholarship but may be a recipient of only one Powers
Scholarship.

Recipients of the Powers Merit Scholarship will be required to:
1. Maintain an overall GPA of 3.2 and demonstrate satisfactory academic progress to retain
the scholarship. A student may receive up to five (5) semesters of full-time funding.
2. Exhibit good character and citizenship.

* In the event a Powers Merit Scholarship recipient receives funding for tuition, fees, and/or
books from other sources, the unused portion of the Powers Merit Scholarship will be held in
reserve until the end of the semester and then disbursed to the student upon successful
course completion.