News

Zirconia senior wins Youth Livestock Scholarship

By Lightning Reports, Published: May 4, 2023

Thirty-one North Carolina students, including Haley Hargus of Zirconia, have been named recipients of 2023 N.C. State Fair Youth Livestock Scholarships, Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler announced Thursday. Hargus will attend Mars Hill University.

The scholarships are designed for high school seniors and students currently enrolled in college who have participated in the junior livestock or market turkey shows at the N.C. State Fair.
The scholarships are funded from a percentage of the total sales at the N.C. State Fair Sale of Champions. The number of scholarships awarded each year is based on qualified applicants and funds available from the previous year’s Sale of Champions. Because of strong support of the 2022 sale, 30 scholarships valued at $2,000 each were awarded this year. One $2,500 scholarship was also sponsored by Farm Credit Associations of North Carolina.

A selection committee evaluated applicants based on their involvement with N.C. State Fair junior livestock shows, academic achievement, extracurricular activities and an essay. Each application was assigned a number and identifying information was removed before evaluation.