Nueces Electric Cooperative (NEC) would like to congratulate six outstanding youth who will each receive a scholarship from the NEC Ramiro De La Paz Memorial Scholarship Fund.

$4,000 Recipients are:

Alexis Wahlen of Calallen High School

Ryan Sikes of Orange Grove High School

Alternates Receiving $1,000 are:

Caroline Alsop of Riviera – Kaufer High School

Jake Leber of Banquette High School

Rachel Johnson of Riviera – Kaufer High School

Aaron Clark of Flour Bluff High School

Alexis Wahlen is a 2014 graduate of Calallen High School in Corpus Christi, TX. She is the daughter of Malynn & Michael Wahlen. Alexis plans to attend Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi and major in nursing and plans to be a physician’s assistant.

Ryan Sikes is a 2014 graduate of Orange Grove High School. He is the son of Randy and Donna Sikes. Ryan has not selected his university but plans to major in religion or theology.

In 2004, the Education Scholarship was renamed the Ramiro De La Paz Memorial Scholarship to honor a beloved NEC board member from Ricardo. The entries significantly grow each year and the Co-op is honored to support members education.

Each year, high school seniors who live in an NEC members home, are eligible to apply for the Ramiro De La Paz Scholarship. To be eligible, students must submit an application (which can be found at www.nueceselectric.org) along with S.A.T. / A.C.T. scores and 3 letters of recommendation. The NEC Education Committee then selects a total of six recipients. Two recipients will each receive $4,000 ($500 for 8 semesters) and four additional alternates will each be awarded $1,000 ($500 for 2 semesters). All recipients are required to attend an approved Texas college or university.

Funding for this scholarship program comes from unclaimed NEC capital credits. Unclaimed capital credits for NEC members are sent to the Texas comptroller.  NEC applies annually to the comptroller to receive a portion of the funds  back to support this scholarship program for students who plan to pursue studies at a Texas institution of higher learning approved by the Office of the Texas Comptroller.

The application process for 2015 scholarships will begin September 1, 2014 and can be found on the NEC website.

NEC is celebrating 75 years of serving South Texas! Started by a group of farmers and ranchers who truly exemplified the pioneer spirit, Nueces Electric Cooperative, Inc. has served the Coastal Bend since 1938. Nueces Electric Cooperative has evolved into a Cooperative that provides electric delivery services to over 18,000 meters utilizing over 3,100 miles of energized power line. Nueces Electric Cooperative also provides competitive retail services to parts of Texas outside the NEC delivery area. For information contact us at 1.800.NEC.WATT or www.nueceselectric.org.

For Media Questions Contact:
Julie Bedsole
communications@nueceselectric.org
361-767-7321