SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
Abingdon Ruritan Club provides financial assistance to graduating seniors of Gloucester High School or Gloucester County Home School program. Students planning to attend a four-year college or university may apply for our $6,000 Academic scholarship. Students planning to seek workforce training through a community college, trade or vocational school may apply for our $3,000 Workforce Training Scholarship. To apply for one of these scholarships, review the following requirements below for each and complete and submit.
ABINGDON RURITAN CLUB
ACADEMIC SCHOLARSHIP CRITERIA
$1,500 per year for four years
Abingdon Ruritan Club presents annual scholarships to graduating high school seniors who are Gloucester County residents. A four-year renewal scholarship of $6,000 ($1,500 per year) is awarded each year to students who will be attending a college or university. Two scholarships are awarded each year.
Applicant must enroll as a full-time student. To receive the subsequent disbursements of $1,500 per year, the student must continue to be a full-time student and be in good academic standing as defined in the school’s Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS:
Must be a Gloucester County resident and a 2026 high school graduating senior.
Must have a 3.0 GPA or higher.
Must have demonstrated community service by participating in extracurricular activities:
In school
In the community
Application – Complete and submit the application and submit it by the deadline. Use a fillable version form if possible. Typewritten is preferred to being handwritten.
Include an essay that addresses community service, fellowship, goodwill and good citizenship. It should demonstrate good sentence structure with correct grammar and spelling and should be at least 250 words. Use a word processing program and double space for legibility.
Include an official copy of your high school transcript or home school record.
Include three letters of recommendation. Please….no form letters! Typewritten preferred.
A recommendation may be obtained from:
School official: (only one) counselor, principal, teacher, coach.
Present or former employer
Church
Community Organizations with which you were involved.
The person providing a recommendation MUST state their name and relationship to the applicant.
FILING DEADLINE: Completed applications from Gloucester High School students must be returned to the School Counseling Office no later than 3 pm, Friday April 10, 2026. All others must be mailed to Abingdon Ruritan Club, P.O. Box 22, Bena, VA 23018 and must be postmarked no later than April 10, 2026.
FOUR YEAR APPLICATION: https://www.abingdonruritanclub.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/four-year-application-Fillable-1.pdf
WORKFORCE TRAINING SCHOLARSHIP
ABINGDON RURITAN CLUB WORKFORCE TRAINING SCHOLARSHIP CRITERIA
$1,500 per year for two years
OVERVIEW
Abingdon Ruritan Club presents an annual scholarship to a graduating high school senior who is a Gloucester County resident. A two-year renewal scholarship of $3,000 ($1,500 per year) is awarded each year.
WHO IS IT FOR
The award is to provide financial assistance for students who will be undergoing training in fields such as medical assistants/technicians, culinary, cosmetology, automotive, HVAC, etc. Community College students enrolled in an associate degree program or to complete courses in anticipation of transferring to a four-year college or university are eligible to apply for this award.
Applicant must enroll as a full-time student. To receive the second-year disbursement of $1,500, the student must continue to be a full-time student and be in good academic standing as defined in the school’s Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
Complete the application and submit it by the deadline. Use a fillable version if possible. Typewritten is preferred to being handwritten.
Must be a graduating high school senior who is a Gloucester County resident.
Must have a 2.2 Grade point average or higher.
Community service preferred by not required.
Include an official copy of your high school transcript or home school record.
Include three letters of recommendation. Please….no form letters! Typewritten preferred.
A recommendation may be obtained from:
School official: (only one) counselor, principal, teacher, coach.
Present or former employer
Church
Community Organizations with which you were involved.
The person providing a recommendation MUSTstate their name and relationship to the applicant.FILING DEADLINE: Completed applications from Gloucester High School students must be returned to the School Counseling Office no later than 3 pm, Friday April 10, 2026. All others must be mailed to Abingdon Ruritan Club, P.O. Box 22, Bena, VA 23018 and must be postmarked no later than April 10, 2026.
Two-Year-Application: https://www.abingdonruritanclub.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Two-Year-Application-Fillable-1.pdf
2025-2026 Recipients Of Abingdon Ruritan’s Scholarships
At the July Membership Meeting, the Abingdon Ruritan Club recognized the recipients of the Club’s scholarships that were awarded for the 2025-26 academic year. Madison Roady and Lilly Riffe each received the Academic Scholarship. They will each receive $1,500 for four years, a total of $6,000 per recipient. Leila Nester received the Workforce Training Scholarship and will receive $1,500 for two years, a total of $3,000. Riffe will be attending Coastal Carolina University to study Marine Science while Roady will be in the Nursing Program at East Carolina University. Nester will be attending Rappahannock Community College, also in the nursing field.
Madison Roady
Lilly Riffe
Leila Nester
ARC Celebrats the Club’s Scholarship Winners
Abingdon Ruritan’s members of the Club’s Scholarship Committee are pictured with the recipients of the Club’s 2025-20026 scholarship winners. Pictured from left are Sid Dugas, Andrea Crawford, Committee Chair Don Sandridge, Riffe, Roady, John Snyder and Wanda Sprouse. Nester was not in attendance due to a work commitment and Committee member Barbara Priest was also not in attendance.