FELLOW WMA MEMBERS:

WMA annually asks its membership to help fund the WMA Scholarship Program as part of its efforts to promote manufacturing through education.  We match those funds the membership underwrites with exceptional students pursuing certification and/or degrees in manufacturing-related disciplines.  Preference is given to individuals likely to seek employment with (or are already employees of) a manufacturing company in South Central Kansas.  Past scholarship awards have typically been between $1,000 and $2,000 each and are paid directly to the school for application toward tuition and/or education-related expenses.  In 2024, WMA increased the award honoring Ellen Shofler, who founded and championed the WMA Scholarship Program, to $2,000.

If you or your employer would like to participate in the WMA Scholarship Program, you can do it in several ways.

• Contributing $1,000 or more for a named scholarship.  Sponsors may “name” their respective scholarships.  Scholarships are typically “named” in one of the following ways:  in the name of a company (such as ABC, Inc.) or in memory of an individual (such as a company founder).  See the 2025 sponsors on our website!  To sponsor a named scholarship, please contact John Trowbridge, WMA Scholarship Chair, at john.trowbridge@aghlc.com  (316) 291-4068 or Jan Baggett, WMA Secretary, at wma@wichitachamber.org  (316) 807-3934.
• You can designate a contribution by giving $50, $100, or any amount less than $1,000 when you renew your membership. If you have already renewed, you can mail a check to WMA at P.O. Box 261, Derby, KS  67037. Or you can pay online. We will pool these funds and award scholarships in the general name of the Wichita Manufacturers Association. We will list these donors on the website and in our press release.

Thank you very much for considering this request.  Last year, our members funded 25 scholarships totaling $33,500.  We have 56 applications this year from deserving high school, trade school, and college students.  Please consider supporting the next generation of manufacturers with this opportunity!

The deadline for commitments to sponsor scholarships is March 31, 2026, with scholarship funds to be paid by May 15, 2026.  Scholarships will be presented to students at the WMA Scholarship Award Picnic on May 21, 2026, at 5:00 pm, at the Kansas Aviation Museum.

John Trowbridge

2017- 2026 WMA Scholarship Chairman

P.O. Box 261, Derby, KS  67037 ∙ www.wichitamanufacturers.org