Nebraska scholarship tips hat to rural teachers

Most of the time, when older folks talk about how they used to walk miles through six feet of snow to get to school everyday, they're exaggerating. People who actually can recall days when schoolhouses only had one room, and towns would only employ one teacher expected to educate students of every age, are a dwindling lot.

In commemoration of such small town days of yore, the University of Nebraska at Kearney (UNK) has established The One Room, One Teacher scholarship, which could allow its recipients to honor rural history while collecting financial aid for college.

“We’ll be able to remember the heritage of where education began in this state and what really made it strong," said UNK Chancellor Doug Kristensen, to the university's newspaper. "I think there’s a number of people who will feel really good and have a passion about one of the strongest Nebraska traditions, that of the country school.”

Scholarships for college specifically offered to students with rural roots are not uncommon. The Center for Rural Health and the Foundation for Rural Service are just two examples of organizations who provide financial aid for school for students of rustic origins.

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