Applications are now available for the Morgan Hill Mushroom Mardi Gras Scholarship program, and there will be even more money for college-bound high school seniors to go around this year.
Applications can be downloaded on the Mushroom Mardi Gras website at mhmmg.com or picked up at the Live Oak and Sobrato High School Counseling offices, or the Morgan Hill Mushroom Mardi Gras office at 224 Tennant Station.
All high school seniors who live within the boundaries of the Morgan Hill Unified School District, attending public or private school, are eligible to apply.
Since its inception, more than 1,000 students have been awarded scholarships totaling more than $990,000 for continuing education.
The MMG board’s decision to increase the amount of scholarships available was based on the tremendous amount of applications received last year, totaling 256. Out of the 256 applications received, 53 high school seniors were given scholarships for a total of $53,000.
This year the members of the Morgan Hill Mushroom Mardi Gras Scholarship Committee, headed by Ron Woolf, Board Treasurer, will award 53 high school seniors with scholarships based on a combination of academic performance, community and school service and need.
Two of the scholarships will be the Brad Spencer Memorial Scholarships. Spencer was the founder of the Morgan Hill Mushroom Mardi Gras in 1980 and served on the board of directors for 36 years. To honor Brad’s memory and long term service, the Brad Spencer Memorial Scholarships will be primarily determined based on a student’s community service involvement.
Scholarship recipients will be introduced at the 38th Annual Morgan Hill Mushroom Mardi Gras Festival at 1 p.m., Sunday, May 28. The festivities will include a presentation of proclamations from city, county and state officials as well as gifts from the Mushroom Mardi Gras Board of Directors, including t-shirts from their respective college of choice and a festival souvenir t-shirt.
The deadline for all applications to be returned to the Mushroom Mardi Gras office (next door to JoAnne’s Fabrics) or the counseling offices at Live Oak and Sobrato High School is Thursday, March 15.
For more information on the scholarship program or any of these services, contact the Morgan Hill Mushroom Mardi Gras office at (408) 778-1786.
