Cooper Tire and Rubber Company recently announced high school graduates who were selected to receive scholarships from the company to pursue higher education, including Ashdown High School student Addison Smedley.
Smedley received a Cooper Centennial Scholarship worth $1,000. The Cooper Centennial Scholarship is in its seventh year and originated to commemorate the company's 100th anniversary in 2014. The scholarship is available to the children of Cooper employees in the U.S. who are outstanding high school seniors and who will pursue degrees at a college, university or technical school.
Smedley is the daughter of David Smedley, a tire inspector at Cooper's Texarkana, Arkansas, plant, and his wife Britany. Addison graduated as salutatorian from Ashdown High School in Ashdown, Arkansas, and this fall, will pursue a degree in speech therapy at Harding University.
In addition to being a member of the National Honor Society, Addison was class officer her junior year and student council secretary her senior year. She was active in SkillsUSA, a career and technical student organization, as well as in Beta Club and Future Business Leaders of America.
"I am honored to be a recipient of the Cooper Tire and Rubber Company Centennial Scholarship," Smedley said.
Cooper's scholarship programs are administered by the Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation, an independent philanthropic agency that manages nearly 450 funds, including 135 scholarships. To be considered for these awards, each student is required to submit an application and essay.
An independent committee of the Community Foundation then selects the winners. Since the inception of these two funds, Cooper has awarded 37 students with scholarships.