Posted by: Media Relations

Two scholarships to recently graduated high school seniors will be awarded in a ceremony at Sheriff’s Headquarters at three in the afternoon by the Chaplains of the Tulare County Sheriff’s Department. This year, the scholarship committee named Jordan Anthony Silva and Jonathan Christopher Porter as their recipients. Both will receive $250 each – the largest amount ever given per recipient by the committee. In order to be considered for the scholarship, applicants were asked to submit their transcript, show that they had at least a 3.0 GPA, write a letter of consideration to the committee, be registered as a full time student, and be a dependent of a Sheriff’s Department employee. 

Silva and Porter, who will be attending Point Loma Nazarene University and College of the Sequoias respectively, are the latest in a long line of scholarship recipients – the committee has presented this scholarship for nearly ten years – and was two of four applicants this year. This year’s scholarship brought another first, as the checks will be written by the Friends of Tulare County group, and will go directly to the schools of the applicants, rather than to the applicants themselves. 

“Every little bit helps,” said Chaplain Les Lungren. Every bit of assistance makes a difference to new college students. According to scholarships.com, the national average of textbooks per semester is $550, which may be much higher in certain parts of California. 

Please join us in the lobby of Sheriff’s Headquarters on Wednesday afternoon to congratulate these two young men on their accomplishments, and wish them well in the future.