by Kurt Nesbitt
Contributing Writer
Elk River High School students looking to go on to post-secondary education can thank three generations of ERHS graduates for a financial boost that was announced Monday night.
Tom and Prudence Wilson, who graduated from Elk River High School in 1944 and 1945 respectively, established the Thomas and Prudence Wilson Family Scholarship after meeting with their children and grandchildren, their son Stewart told Elk River Area School Board members Monday night.
Left to right: Superintendent Dan Bittman, Stewart Wilson, Elk River Area School Board Chairman Shane Steinbrecher and Elk River High School Principal Terry Bizal.
The family will contribute $200,000 in an investment fund with a good track record with $10,000 being awarded each year. That money will be divided between two students graduating from Elk River High School. According to Wilson and school board members, the scholarship will give one student seeking a traditional, four-year degree a $7,500 boost and $2,500 boost to another student seeking a vocational degree.
Wilson said his parents, who are now in their 90s, decided it was time to give back.
“We all got together, my sisters and I — my sisters are also graduates of Elk River High School. One thing we agreed on immediately to consider would be a scholarship for the students at Elk River High School. My parents are certainly strong believers in education and being graduates of Elk River High School and producing four children who ultimately went on to graduate from college and two grandchildren who ultimately went on to college. So it was a pretty easy decision to make to award this scholarship to Elk River High School,” Wilson said.
Wilson said he worked with Superintendent Dan Bittman, Executive Director of Business Greg Hein and Assistant Director of Finance Joe Primus to iron out the details involved with establishing the scholarship.
“The intention of the gift is that it will be long-lasting. It will be maintained in an investment that has had a very long, proven track record of being able to increase in value and hopefully these scholarships will just go on forever and ever,” Wilson said.
Wilson said Elk River High School Principal Terry Bizal gave him the idea to split the scholarship into two categories.
“He really sold both me and my family on the wisdom that, in today’s market, how important that vocational degree is,” Wilson said.