Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall Scholarship

Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall Scholarship

The Mission of the Kendall County Fair Association Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall Scholarship Program is to establish a learning environment to honor the past, showcase the present, encourage and enhance the rural heritage and agricultural industries of Kendall County.

The Goals of the program are:

Academic Excellence - Create and uphold high standards of excellence in instruction, research and outreach in agricultural education for the greater Hill Country community.

Youth Development - Recruit, retain and educate youth in an academic environment that encourages excellence in agricultural education, prepares them for agricultural careers, enriches personal growth, fosters discovery of knowledge and promotes leadership.

Diversity - Achieve diversity and environment for youth and adult alike to respect other individuals, respect cultural diversity, the animal and plant kingdom, the bounties of this earth, to become stewards of our natural resources and to the history and heritage of the agricultural industry as a whole.

Nutrition and Healthy Food Sources - Enhance the quality of life within our rural community by contributing to the current and future human, economic and cultural development or rural agricultural, horticultural, and culinary industries in Texas.

Rural Agricultural Development - Enhance agricultural education through the provision of static exhibits, live presentations and competitions that recognizes our diverse agricultural industry, encourage “Best Practice” and enhance creative thinking and the entrepreneurship within local rural crafts, industries and traditions.

Collaborative Partnerships - Leverage and focus financial and physical resources to achieve the strategic advancement of this program by promoting donations from local patrons, selling catalog ads, using partnerships with industry, government and private foundations and collaborations with other stakeholders.

Image/Pride/Recognition - Communicate an image that accurately reflects community pride in our agricultural heritage achievements and that rewards positive personal growth, agricultural education and community involvement.

The Objective of the program is to enhance the knowledge and appreciation of agricultural, horticultural, culinary, heritage crafts, art and agricultural endeavors within our Hill Country community by increasing our program participation by 30% annually within all age groups as participants engage themselves as an exhibitor, a patron or supporter.

Current Activities:

Community Outreach - Promote the Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall to the community, encourage participation, provide community information by printing a program catalog, distributing flyers to encourage prior planning and investigation toward possible individual exhibits. Interactive booth displays will be utilized at community events.

Enhance Participation - Promoting increased participation by providing early exhibitor entry days a week before the scheduled fair as to provide ample time for participants to enter and participate in the Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall exhibits.

KCFA Annual Labor Day Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall Competitions - Providing competitions and impartial judging sessions to determine the “Best” project within the various competitions for all ages on the Friday of the Labor Day Fair week.

KCFA Annual Labor Day Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall Showcase - Providing three days to showcase each exhibitor’s project(s) agricultural displays, and interactive exhibits within the Exhibit Hall and on the KCFA grounds during the KCFA Labor Day Fair for thousands of patrons to browse and view creating a positive learning environment for the whole community.

Recognition of Winners- Providing ribbons, awards, photo sessions, photo and name acknowledgement in local newspapers and acknowledgement in the following year’s catalog of all Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall winners each year.

Scholarship Program Information, Guidelines and Application for
The Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall.

We are continuing to develop an excellent strategic plan, business plan, and annual plans of action that solidifies our course into the future. We are establishing our approach to local corporate and private foundations for funding sources. We continue to make presentations and donation requests to local community organizations and business to continue and enhance our program. We are confident that these efforts will increase our community participation, donor base, client participation and our volunteer base.

Apply for our Scholarship

2024 Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall Scholarship Program

Scholarship Applicants criteria:

1. The applicant must be a 2023-2024 school year graduating Senior from Boerne High School, Champion High School, Comfort High School, any private or home school program from Kendall County.

2. Any 2024 graduating Senior from the list in #1 above pursuing a career in Agriculture/Ag Business, Horticultural, Floriculture, Art, Photography, Taxidermy, any field of home related arts to include or not limited to Handicrafts and Life Skill

3. The applicant must be a citizen of the U.S. a resident of Kendall County and never been convicted of a criminal offense.

4. The applicant will be given preference and extra points if applicant has:

a. Volunteered Community Service in the Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall during the year and/or during the Annual Kendall County Fair or prior to the Annual Kendall County Fair in preparation of the Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall.

b. Past Year's Exhibitor Participation in The Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall during the Annual Kendall County Fair.

c. Is a Junior Member of the Kendall County Fair Association, Inc.

d. Is a current active member of local FFA or 4-H Chapters.

e. Applicant will be continuing his/her education of study in any field of agriculture, horticultural, floriculture, photography/art, taxidermy and/or any field of life skills of home arts related to crafting and baking/cooking.

5. Scholarship amount awarded will be evaluated on the basis of his/her application qualifying criteria.

6. Applicant application will be reviewed and judged by a scholarship committee of the KCFA. Selection of the recipient(s) will not be based on sex, race, religion, financial need and/or class rank or scholastic major.

Scholarship applicants must provide the following documentations:

1. An official, sealed high school transcript posted through the most recent grading period.

2. A letter of recommendation from one school official from instructor or academic advisor from a school attended in the previous 12 months

3. A letter or recommendation from a personal or community reference. Recommendation letters should not be written by a relative, which is defined as a parent, grandparent or sibling.

4. A self-description, in narrative form, to include hobbies, employment, scholastic and organizational activities, awards, major educational interest to include any volunteer time and exhibitor participation in the Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall during the Annual Kendall County Fair.

5. A 300 word handwritten essay on "What The Annual Kendall County Fair Means To Me And The
Community."

6. Application and requested documentations must be submitted and postmarked on or
before May 1, 2024 to:

Kendall County Fair Association, Inc.
Attn: Homestead Heritage Exhibit Hall Scholarship Program
P.O. Box 954
Boerne, Texas 78006

DOWNLOAD OUR APPLICATION BELOW

2024 Scholarship Application