Recipients of minority engineering scholarships will be recognized on Thursday at UTC. Former Chattanooga City Councilman James Moreland, along with State Senator Todd Gardenhire and other members of the Hamilton County legislative delegation will be on hand to celebrate UTC’s Moreland Scholarship recipients.
Senator Gardenhire worked with his colleagues in the Tennessee General Assembly to secure $100,000 in state funding to award scholarships to selected minority engineering students at UTC for the 2021-2022 academic year. For the 2022-2023 academic year, Senator Gardenhire secured public funding of $500,000 for Moreland Scholarship awards for eligible UTC minority engineering students.
Mr. Moreland, for whom the scholarship is named, is a black Chattanoogan and community activist who did not attend college due to lack of financial resources. Long active in civic and church affairs, Mr. Moreland is the winner of a city leadership award and a Hamilton County distinguished citizen award in 2018.
As a “last-dollar scholarship,” the Moreland Scholarship applies to costs that remain after funding from all other aid such as federal Pell grants and Tennessee HOPE scholarships has been applied. Funding per student varies, with a maximum $5,000 annual award per students. Assuming a satisfactory minimum GPA, scholarship recipients for the 2022-2023 academic year can receive the Moreland for all four years as undergraduates.
Eligible students must be Tennessee residents, identify as a member of a minority group and have a competitive GPA. Given the Moreland Scholarship’s emphasis on recruiting students into engineering majors, eligible candidates must be first-year or transfer students.
A UTC College of Engineering and Computer Science survey of recent graduates found a median annual salary of $72,500 reported by engineering graduates in their first year of employment and local demand in engineering jobs far exceeding available supply.
Senator Gardenhire, a proud UTC alumnus, will speak at Thursday’s event, and UTC Chancellor Steven R. Angle, Provost Jerold Hale, Vice Chancellor Stacy Lightfoot, and Dean Daniel Pack will be on hand to thank the Tennessee General Assembly for their approval and Senator Gardenhire for his leadership efforts to secure the scholarship funding; recognize and thank Moreland and congratulate the scholarship recipients. Musical entertainment by the Singing Mocs will be included in the program.