Village of Ladd and Illinois Municipal Utilities Association announce 2021 scholarship competition

The Village of Ladd, in partnership with the Illinois Municipal Utilities Association, is offering a scholarship competition program for eligible high school seniors.

Each applicant will be asked to submit an application and an essay of 500 words or fewer addressing their choice of one of four utility-related questions.

The four who receive the most votes in the competition will receive a finalist certificate and a $1,000 scholarship award check from IMUA.

Applications and instructions are available at the Ladd Village Clerk’s office and on the village’s website, www.villageofladd.com.

The deadline for submitting applications and essays is March 12 . Applicants may contact IMUA’s DeeDee Bunch at 217-789-4632 or dbunch@imea.org for information.

Superintendent of the Village of Ladd Doug Englehaupt believes the program serves two purposes: to promote and recognize scholastic achievement and to create greater awareness among young adults of the many issues facing consumers and public power municipalities.

President and CEO of the IMUA, Kevin M. Gaden, said all organizations involved in the scholarship program benefit from it.

“Since its inception in 2000, IMUA’s scholarship program has proven to be a very popular and successful program for IMUA, its members and the communities they serve,” Gaden said. “IMUA’s scholarship program is another example of how municipally owned and operated utility systems can help return value to their communities.”

In the program’s existence, it has awarded more than $47,000 to 88 students from 29 different IMUA member communities statewide.

Organized in 1948, IMUA is a statewide trade association that represents the unified interests and provides services to 50 municipalities which operate their own electric, natural gas, telecommunications, water and wastewater treatment systems.