News release from Kroger:
Kroger Announces Scholarship Winner Samantha Tinney
One of 25 winners in the multi-state operating division; 352 national winners in 2015(August 18, 2015) – Kroger Central Division announced today that Samantha Tinney of Ft. Wayne, Indiana received a Kroger Scholars award of $1,000. She is the daughter of Ronald Tinney, an associate at the 6002 St. Joe Center Road location. Samantha will be a freshman at Purdue University.
According to Kroger Central Division President Jeff Burt, “Strong support of education should be a priority for every corporate citizen; K-12 education is one of five national priorities for The Kroger Co. and in Central Division, we place a special emphasis on this particular priority.” Burt explains, “Back in February 2014 we launched a $4.9 million, three-year K-12 education strategy and we are pleased that this year, our strategy includes providing scholarships to 25 children of Kroger Central Division associates.” “Our decision to support education goes back more than 100 years and is motivated by two priorities: improving the educational opportunities available to our children and building the best possible workforce for our future”, says Burt, “we are very proud of Samantha’s academic accomplishments and other achievements and it is our privilege to honor her this way.”
As a company-wide program of The Kroger Co. Foundation, Kroger Scholars is open to children of associates in the Kroger family. To qualify, employees must have two years of service and work at least 1,000 hours per year. For the 2015-2016 school year 352 students across the nation will receive a scholarship. Funds can be used at any accredited two or four-year college, university or vocational program. Scholarship America, a leading national scholarship manager, selected recipients based on a broad range of criteria including scholastic performance, work experience, extra-curricular and volunteer activities; a personal statement of goals and aspirations was also required. Financial need was not a consideration and there were no internal personnel from The Kroger Co. involved in the selection process.
About the Kroger Co.:
The Kroger Co. has been serving local communities for 132 years. The Kroger Central Division has 136 food stores, 115 pharmacies and 90 fuel centers operating under four banners; Kroger, Scott’s, Owen’s and Pay Less, with locations primarily in Indiana and Illinois, in addition to three stores in Missouri, one in Michigan and one in Ohio. Kroger Central Division is dedicated to supporting every local community it serves, contributing more than $13.5 million in 2014 to local organizations, primarily focusing on hunger relief, K-12 education, health causes and diversity. The Kroger Co. was recently named the most generous company in America in a Chronicle of Philanthropy listing detailed in Forbes Magazine. At Kroger we value: honesty, respect, inclusion, diversity, safety and integrity.