ECC Foundation Receives $70,000 Scholarship Donation

The East Central College Foundation recently announced a donation of $70,000 from the estate of the late Carl Cochran, Labadie.

The donation is in addition to the $30,000 Cochran donated to ECC last summer to establish the Barbara Cochran Memorial Scholarship to honor his wife.

Shannon Grus, executive director of the ECC Foundation, noted that Cochran was a strong supporter of the college prior to his death in early January.

He served as a Foundation board member from 1983 to 1993.

“Though Carl never attended ECC, he considered the college vital to the region,” Grus said. “He often mentioned that he didn’t consider himself wealthy, but felt he had been blessed and needed to give back to the community in some manner. He wanted to inspire other people to contribute as well.”

Cochran managed the airport in Washington following a long career as a captain with Ozark Airlines.

The first Barbara Cochran Memorial Scholarship will be awarded for the 2013-14 school year. Full-time students majoring in science and math may apply, with preference given to students interested in aviation.

The scholarship will cover tuition, fees and books for one year and is renewable.

Grus noted that it only takes $10,000 to create an endowed permanent scholarship at ECC. The initial donation is not used to provide funding, but rather the interest from that investment provides the scholarship awards.

“People don’t have to donate the $10,000 all at once,” she said. “Donations can be made over time until the endowment reaches $10,000.”

In addition to endowed scholarships, the ECC Foundation also manages dozens of scholarships set up by families, businesses and organizations which add to their respective funds on a quarterly or annual basis to sustain their scholarships.

For information on establishing a scholarship at East Central, people may call Grus, at 636-584-6505, or smgrus@eastcentral.edu. Details also are available at: www.eastcentral.edu/foundation.