The Curtis Hanson/Midstate Equipment Wisconsin Rural Opportunities Foundation, Inc. (WORF) Board Scholar is Kelly Hueckman of Prentice, Wis. She received a $1000 scholarship towards her education and was selected from over 300 applicants from rural Wisconsin.
Hueckman, the daughter of Bradley Hueckman and Judith Darrin, is a 2020 graduate of Prentice High School in north central Wisconsin. She is currently attending the University of Wisconsin-Fox Cities pursuing a degree in social work and earning her master’s degree in school counseling. “The youth will always be the future, so my job would not only help children and adolescents in the present, but also the future of them and their communities,” states Hueckman.
Growing up in a community of less than 700 people, for Hueckman volunteering and teamwork are a pillar of her life. “In all my 17 years of living in such a rural community, I am no stranger to going above and beyond to volunteering my creative skills and effort wherever I can,” she says. For Hueckman, “Often times, students in rural areas can feel as though they are overlooked or less important than students in urban areas, but I want to make a full circle and come back to rural Wisconsin to make sure that students there make sure they are more than what today’s society might make them out to be.” She served as the National Honor Society President, Art Club President, on the school council, and participated in softball and volleyball. Additionally, she taught Bible school, wrote for the school paper and was an active part of the school musical stage crew.
The WROF is honored to announce the inaugural class of board scholars. Nine rural Wisconsin students were selected to receive a scholarship that is funded and supported by a board member of WROF. “Supporting rural Wisconsin youth is more important than ever as they pursue endeavors to further their education and bring their knowledge and skill back to the rural areas of Wisconsin,” says Curtis Hanson, board member emeritus.
Since 1934, the Wisconsin Rural Opportunities Foundation, Inc. has invested in the education of people from rural Wisconsin so they, in turn, can transform and improve the economic health and quality of life in their rural areas. As a 501(c)(3) charitable foundation, more than 6000 individuals have received over $6.2 million in scholarships and grants in agricultural and rural health care education in over 30 different Wisconsin educational institutions and programs.
