Grayling Rotary Club Establishes the Paul Harris Endowed Scholarship

The Grayling Rotary Club has established the Paul Harris Scholarship fund to honor Paul Harris, the founder of Rotary International.

Justin Andre, president of the Grayling Rotary Club, presented the funds to Kirtland Community College President Thomas Quinn at Kirtland Community College on November 12, 2021 to establish the scholarship.

Justin stated, “We are really proud to be helping our local students further their education at this fine facility.  Moreover, it is especially gratifying to honor Paul Harris whose work has had such a positive impact around the world. This scholarship is our way of saying thanks to Mr. Harris.  In today’s vernacular we are proud to say, ‘Mr. Harris, we have your back.’   The Grayling Rotary Club is continuing to do your good work and, in this case, it will be one scholarship at a time.”

The world-wide Rotary organization includes 32,000 community clubs and over 1.2 million members.  Rotary International was started in Chicago Illinois in 1905.  The Grayling Rotary Club was chartered in 1972.  Rotary has a presence in over 200 countries.

Rotary clubs work on local and global projects. From scholarships, assistance to community not-for-profits, to the worldwide fight for clean water and the elimination of Polio, Rotary is there.  Paul Harris had the foresight to establish groups of business professionals with common goals of service to their communities and the public as a whole.  It quickly caught on and spread around the globe. 

Grayling High School graduates will have the opportunity to apply for the scholarship in courses of study such as Nursing, Automotive, Surgical Technology, Cardiac Sonography, Medical Terminology, Business, Cosmetology, Liberal Arts, Science, Police Academy, and General Studies.

The Paul Harris Endowed Scholarship will pay $500 a year, forever.  It is permanently funded and managed through the Kirtland Community College.