The Indiana Commission for Higher Education recently awarded more than 300 scholarships in the eighth year of the Next Generation Hoosier Educators Scholarship.

Of those, two were from Jackson County — Evan Carroll who graduated from Salem High School and Madison Singleton who graduated from Brownstown Central High School, according to a news release from Chris Lowery, the Indiana Commissioner for Higher Education.

After high school, Carroll’s further education lies at Purdue University West Lafayette, while Singleton plans to attend Indiana University Southeast.

Selected through a competitive process based on academic achievement and other factors, the scholarship provides a renewable scholarship of up to $10,000 per year (up to $40,000 total). In exchange, students agree to teach for five years at an eligible Indiana school or repay the corresponding, prorated amount of the scholarship.

A record-breaking 945 students applied for the scholarship, a 58% increase over 2023. Applications were received from students representing 315 high schools in 89 of Indiana’s 92 counties. Additionally, 71% of applicants were Indiana high school seniors with the remainder comprised of current college students.

To qualify, students had to either graduate in the top 20% of their high school class, earn a score in the 20th percentile on the SAT or ACT, or have at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA. To continue earning the scholarship in college, students must earn a 3.0 cumulative GPA and complete at least 30 credit hours per year.