Published: October 23, 2009 08:44 am      

City-sponsored scholarships a great idea

Come Nov. 2, the Logansport City Council will consider what should be a valuable addition to the city: $100,000 for an endowed scholarship at Ivy Tech Community College.

The council recently approved $10,000 for two annual scholarships for Logansport residents, who attend the school. One scholarship would go to a student who has earned a general education development certificate, and the second would go to a student just shy of completing a degree.

By appropriating that additional $100,000, the city would be investing in the community and helping to boost the educational growth of its residents. And the money would continue to grow as Ivy Tech pays 5 percent interest.

In these economic times, companies looking to build or expand into communities seriously consider the education level of the area’s workforce.

The money the city will use for the scholarships would come out of $700,000 in the non-reverting Eastgate Property Fund. That money comes from the rent Ivy Tech has paid to the city for its current classrooms and offices.

As Scott Kraud, chairman of the finance committee, noted, “We want people that live here to go to school here and stay here to work. And if we can help them break down one of the barriers of attending, which is cost, then that is great.”

Indeed it is.