The American Soybean Association (ASA) will again offer the Secure Optimal Yield (SOY) Scholarship for the 2009-2010 school year. The scholarship is managed by ASA and sponsored by BASF Company.

The SOY Scholarship is a one-time $5,000 award ($2,500 each semester, pending qualifications met) to an eligible High School senior who plans to declare agriculture as a degree area of study at any accredited college or University of their choice. The award is to be used directly for tuition, fees, books, not to exceed $2,500 per semester, and not to exceed tuition amount with other fee dedicated aid. Deadline to apply is November 15, 2008.

Last year’s winner, Laura Stevens, From Falls City, Neb., is currently enrolled at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln majoring in Agronomy.

ASA President John Hoffman said, "By providing financial assistance for college, the ASA is helping future generations of farmers to realize their goals."

Applicants must be the child or grandchild of a current, active member of the American Soybean Association (membership in the state soybean association is the same as membership in ASA). Only one award is available per family or household, during the life of the scholarship program. The scholarship award will be sent directly to the student’s school of choice after enrollment has been verified. The scholarship winner must maintain a college level grade point average (GPA) of 2.5 in order to receive the full amount of the scholarship. College level GPA information will be verified between semesters.

To apply, applicants must have a minimum 3.0 High School GPA and must provide a copy of their most recent transcripts (unofficial copy is acceptable). Students must supply information on their extracurricular/leadership activities and provide two letters of recommendation. One letter must be from an authority figure dealing directly with the student’s academic progress, and the second letter must come from a personal reference. The student must also supply documentation of their most recent college entrance level standardized test score (ACT or SAT).

In addition to these requirements, applicants must complete an essay question with a maximum of 500 words. Additional information on the requirements and the application for the scholarship may be found on the SOY Scholarship webpage. (See URL address below) All materials must be submitted before an applicant will be considered for the scholarship.

The scholarship winner will be chosen in December and an official announcement will be made in February 2009 at Commodity Classic in Grapevine, Texas. For more information on scholarship requirements or to apply on-line go to www.soygrowers.com/soy, or contact ASA Corporate Development Manager, Michelle Siegel at 1-800-688-7692 ext. 1328 or msiegel@soy.org. All requested application materials can be mailed to: ATTN: Scholarship, American Soybean Association, 12125 Woodcrest Executive Dr., Ste. 100, Saint Louis, MO 63141.