Three students have been selected as recipients of the first
scholarships established in the memory of Larry W. McCurdy,
chairman of the board of Affinia Group Inc., who passed away
in August 2010. The first McCurdy scholarship recipients
were selected from this year's applicants at the Global
Automotive Aftermarket Symposium (GAAS) Scholarship Web
site, www.AutomotiveScholarships.com. Each will receive a
$2,500 award for the 2010-2011 academic year.
The
recipients are:
- Grant Boeckmann, Plymouth, Wis., a student at the
University of Wisconsin majoring in mechanical engineering.
His career goal is to work in the automotive aftermarket.
- Alexander Panin, Vancouver, Wash., a student at
Eastern Washington University majoring in mechanical
engineering. His career goal is to design electric vehicles.
- Zachary Rohde, Olathe, Kan., a student at the
University of Kansas majoring in mechanical engineering. His
career goal is to work for a vehicle or parts manufacturer.
Affinia Group Inc. established the memorial scholarship
fund with the University of Aftermarket Foundation to honor
McCurdy, who served as Affinia's chairman since its
inception in 2004. The fund will award three $2,500
scholarships per year to students in four-year programs
preparing for aftermarket careers in engineering, business,
accounting or other professional positions.The GAAS
Scholarship Committee has established a reviewer group for
the 2011 McCurdy scholarships, which will be presented in
May at the 2011 Global Automotive Aftermarket Symposium
(GAAS).
These most recent scholarships bring the total 2010 awards
from the GAAS scholarship site to 139 students receiving 158
scholarships by the GAAS Scholarship fund, its contributors
and other groups collaborating with the GAAS Scholarship Web
site.Other individual scholarships ranged from $250 to
$3,000, and, in total, $158,000 was awarded. In its 15-year
history, the fund has presented more than $1.5 million in
awards to more than 1,500 students.Ninety-four GAAS
scholarships were awarded in 2010, including eight awards to
students in Canada. The annual investment to develop future
automotive aftermarket industry leaders is funded through
proceeds from the annual Global Automotive Aftermarket
Symposium, donations from individual donors and funding
from:
- Breslow Foundation
- Gates Corporation
- Leadership Development Network
- Michael Busch Memorial Fund
- R.L. Polk
- Standard Motor Products
- U of A Foundation
- Zurich
