Victory Electric is proud to sponsor our scholarship program for high school seniors and current college students. Each spring, Victory Electric awards ten $1,000 scholarships to its members and/or their dependents. The Lightner Community Spirit Scholarship is designed to recognize students who have demonstrated academic success as well as showing a commitment to bettering their community.
“As a not-for-profit cooperative, one of our guiding principles is ‘Commitment to Community,’ and I can’t think of a better way than a scholarship program to give back to the communities we serve and encourage youth to be involved in their own community," said Shane Laws, Victory Electric CEO.
The name of the scholarship honors the Lightner family of Plymell, Kansas. Richard Lightner served the Victory Electric’s board of trustees for 36 years, and his father, George, served 31 years previous. Both strongly supported Victory Electric’s community and youth programs.
To be eligible for the scholarship, applicants must be an active member in good standing with the cooperative, or a dependent of such member. Applicants must be a full-time student or entering an accredited trade school, college or university.
Please check back for information on the 2023 application submission process. For further information, please contact us at askcommunications@victoryelectric.net.
The Victory Electric Cooperative Assn., Inc., will award ten $1,000 scholarships to its members or their dependents pursuing higher education.
- All applicants for the scholarship shall be considered on the application criteria without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin or existence of a physical handicap.
- Victory Electric personnel will review applications for completeness before removing names and any identifying information and submitting qualifying applications to a selection committee made of impartial judges who will evaluate application details, grammar and spelling; academic ability; and the applicant’s contributions to their community to determine scholarship winners.
- Scholarships must be applied toward tuition and fees. Funds are paid directly to the college/university or trade school at the beginning of the fall semester upon presentation of proof of enrollment.
- All applications must be complete via the online application process.
- The official transcript must be emailed directly to Victory Electric from a counselor or school official OR placed in a sealed envelope with the envelope flap signed by a school official and either mailed to Victory Electric or delivered to our office location.
- Scholarships are available to graduating high school seniors and current college students.
- Applicants must be a current student at or be entering an accredited college, university or trade school.
- Must be registered as a full-time student.
- Must be an active Victory Electric member in good standing or a dependent such member.
- Good standing is defined as “a member who paid the 12 most recent Victory Electric bills in which he/she is legally responsible or liable, without having been issued more than two termination notices.”
- Scholarships are for one year. An applicant may apply as often as desired but are only eligible to receive ONE Victory Electric scholarship.
- Must have and maintain at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA on a 4.0 scale
The online application process is split into 10-steps and guides an applicant through the requirements of each step. The form requires the applicant to complete each step before moving to the next step, although you can go back to previous steps. The application form requires ALL form fields to be completed and any documents uploaded before the final application can be submitted. An unfinished application CANNOT be saved, and any information will be lost if an applicant exits the application form before submitting the final application.
To help applicants know what to expect when applying for the Lightner Community Spirit Scholarship, the requirements of each step are outlined below.
Step 1 is intended to give applicants a brief outline of the requirements to complete the scholarship application process.
Because an applicant cannot save the application form once you begin and before your final application is submitted, applicants are encouraged to gather and prepare any necessary materials, such as:
- Victory Electric account information
- Current GPA
- Résumé
- Headshot photograph
- Photographer’s copyright release form
The official transcript and photographer’s copyright release may take much longer to obtain, so applicants should consider addressing those items well in advance of the application deadline. In addition, we recommend applicants have the resume, biographical statement, and essay completed prior to starting the online application process. This gives applicants the opportunity to ensure the documents are edited and free of any spelling or grammatical errors.
Provide applicant details and contact information such as name, address, phone number, birth date, etc.
In addition to listing the contact information of parents/legal guardians, applicants must also provide the account information for the Victory Electric member (i.e. name on Victory Electric account, account number, service address, etc.) This information can be found on a Victory Electric billing statement.
Eligibility requirements state scholarship applicants must be an active Victory Electric member in good standing for at least 12 consecutive months or a dependent such member. If you are NOT the member, you will need to obtain this information from a parent/legal guardian.
Identify a current school (high school/college/trade school), classification, GPA, and education goals/major.
Upload a résumé in Word or PDF format. The résumé should contain school and extracurricular activities, church or community involvement, volunteer or community service activities, work experience, awards/honors, etc.
Write a brief biographical statement that includes your educational goals, financial need, and other pertinent information about yourself. Applicants should upload a Word or PDF document containing the biographical statement with your first and last name in the header of each page.
Applicants must be able to communicate how they contribute non-paid time to help their community, school, church or non-profit organization.
Essay question:
As a cooperative, Victory Electric follows the seven cooperative principles. One of those principles is “Commitment to Community.” Please explain how both Victory Electric contributes to your community AND how you personally contribute to your community.
Upload a Word or PDF document containing a 450 to 600 word essay with your first and last name in the header of each page.
An applicant is required to submit an official transcript.
- Mail the transcript to in a sealed envelope with the envelope flap signed by a school official to Victory Electric Cooperative | Attn: Allison Doll | P.O. Box 1335 Dodge City, KS 67801
OR - Deliver the transcript in a sealed envelope with the envelope flap signed by a school official to Victory Electric’s office at 3230 N 14th Avenue Dodge City, KS 67801. It's best to deliver to a representative in the lobby, but if needed, transcripts can be placed in the payment drop box. If it is placed in the payment drop box on the day of the application deadline, please do so before 9 a.m., to avoid disqualification for lateness.
OR - Request a counselor or school official email a digital transcript document directly to askcommunications@victoryelectric.net.
Note: It can often take school officials a few days, a week or more to process a request for an official transcript, so please do not wait too late. Transcripts are due no later than 5 p.m. on the application deadline.
Upload a digital, high-resolution headshot photo. In the event an applicant is awarded a scholarship, the photo will be used for the scholarship announcement and for promotional purposes. No selfies, please.
Additionally, because professional photographs are subject to copyright protection, portraits or headshot photographs must be accompanied by a photographer’s copyright release. If a professional photographer shot the photo submitted, please provide a copyright release from the photographer allowing Victory Electric to use the photo for promotional and advertising purposes. It is preferred applicants download this specific photographer’s photo release form and send to the photographer to complete.
* Some photographers allow individuals to purchase full copyrights at the time digital photos are purchased, and should have provided a document releasing the any and all rights to copy and reproduce the photos. A digital or scanned copy of this documentation is acceptable.
*** If an applicant provides a photographer copyright release other than the template provided, please note Victory Electric will NOT accept any photographer copyright release stating “for personal use only,” “for self-use or self-promotion,” “for legal and non-commercial use,” or “not for commercial and editorial purposes.”
Signature of the applicant.
If under the age of 18, an applicant should ensure a parent or legal guardian is available to sign the application before starting the application process.