Stephen Ayers, of Suffolk, and Megan Owens and Madison Whitehurst, both of Franklin, have earned scholarships awarded by the Educational Scholarship Foundation of the Virginia, Maryland and Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives.

Stephen, a senior at Lakeland High School and the son of Rhoda Ayers, plans to attend Virginia Tech.

The daughter of Sylvia and Buford Owens, Megan is a senior at Southampton Academy and has been accepted by the College of William and Mary.

Madison, the daughter of William and Jennifer Whitehurst, is also a senior at Southampton Academy and plans to attend Christopher Newport University.

Each student was awarded their scholarship based on a competitive screening process and was eligible for consideration because their parents are consumer-members of Community Electric Cooperative. Applicants must be entering their first semester of college, technical or trade school in the fall of 2013.

This year, the scholarship foundation received 212 applications from students in areas served by electric cooperatives in Virginia, Maryland and Delaware. The foundation is awarding 48 Worth M. Hudson Scholarships in the amount of $1,000 each and two C.D. Hypes Memorial Scholarships in the amount of $1,000 each to a total of 50 high school seniors. Recipients were chosen based on financial need, academic achievement and a personal statement.

The foundation is funded through tax-deductible donations and proceeds from the Spring Round-Up Golf Tournament. The Worth M. Hudson Scholarships are named in honor of the first chair of the foundation and former chair of the board of Mecklenburg Electric Cooperative in Chase City. The C.D. Hypes Memorial Scholarships are named in memory of the late C.D. Hypes, who taught agriculture in Virginia public schools for 30 years and also served on the board of Craig Botetourt Electric Cooperative in New Castle.

Since its inception in 2001, the foundation has awarded 409 electric cooperative scholarships totaling $308,500. The number of scholarships awarded each year is based upon funds available, and these grants can be used to pay for tuition, fees and books.