SELCO COMMUNITY CREDIT UNION TO BEGIN ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS ON FEB. 1 FOR ANNUAL SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

SELCO Community Credit Union will begin accepting applications on Sunday, Feb. 1, for nearly $80,000 in SELCO Steps Up scholarships. The application window will remain open through Tuesday, March 31.
 
SELCO will award 20 eligible students with a $3,500 scholarship. Additionally, one Lane County student will receive the $7,500 Richard Metzler Opportunity Scholarship, awarded to a student who has demonstrated excellence in education, leadership, or civic responsibility despite adversity or a lack of opportunity. 
 
In all, SELCO will award $77,500 in scholarships to eligible students, which include high school seniors planning to attend an accredited two- or four-year college, as well as vocational, continuing, and nontraditional students. Graduate students are not eligible. 
 
“Students approach education differently than they once did,” said Craig Carpenter, SELCO’s Senior Vice President of Lending & Business Banking. “It’s why SELCO’s scholarship program evolved to support a diverse cross-section of students, including those planning to attend technical school or returning to finish their degree. As a credit union founded by teachers 90 years ago, meaningful student and educator support will continue to be foundational to how we give back.”
 
Now in its 36th year, SELCO’s scholarship program is part of the SELCO Steps Up philanthropy initiative that the credit union launched in 2024. In 2025 alone, SELCO reinvested nearly $415,000 in the communities it serves through educator grants, scholarships, and impact-driven sponsorships, while SELCO team members committed nearly 1,700 volunteer hours. 
 
Whether it's support for students or teachers, many of the Steps Up programs seek to address issues in education. SELCO’s scholarship program aims to address the cost of school, which is the most often cited barrier for those who wish to attend college but don’t. SELCO’s scholarships can also be used for any educational-related expense, so they are uniquely suited to help students meet the demands of rising educational costs.
 
Ethan Amato, a University of Oregon freshman from North Bend, earned a SELCO scholarship in 2025 and is now studying pharmacology. He said that the scholarship has “helped relieve the stress” of meeting educational costs.
 
“It was a huge sigh of relief when I found out I’d received the SELCO scholarship,” said Amato, who also helped found UofO’s first-ever Pharmacy Club for future pharmacists and serves as the organization’s co-president. “The scholarship has really helped relieve the burden of paying for college—not just for me, but for my parents as well.”
 
To qualify, applicants must:

• Plan to attend a vocational school or an accredited two- or four-year college/university.
• Be a SELCO member or an immediate family member of a SELCO member. SELCO membership is open to anyone who lives or works in one of the 27 Oregon counties SELCO serves.
• Have earned a GED or a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher from a four-year accredited high school.

 
SELCO’s Scholarship Panel will review each application, and funds will be released to scholarship recipients by the end of June. The Richard Metzler Opportunity Scholarship winner will be selected from Lane County applicants. Prospective students are asked to apply online at selco.org/scholarships by March 31.

For more information on the scholarship program or other SELCO Steps Up programs, visit www.selco.org/steps-up. ​

---