Michigan Schools and Government Credit Union, Clinton Township, Mich., has made six Rudolph Heino and Sallylou Cloyd scholarships available to graduating high school seniors. The scholarships will each provide $2,000 toward students' college education and are intended to reward them for work history and academic achievements.

Educational Community Credit Union, Kalamazoo, Mich., offered $23,000 to be divided among 21 college scholarships. Nineteen $1,000 scholarships will be awarded to individuals based on their performance inside and outside of the classroom. In addition, two $2,000 scholarships will be given in honor of two dedicated directors who have served at ECCU for more than 20 years, Donna vanWestrienen and Robert E. Treloar.

Members Advantage Credit Union, Michigan City, Ind., will award a $1,000 scholarship in memory of Leona Bruno, the first manager of the credit union. Personal integrity as well as a student's scholastic performance is considered when determining the recipient of the award.

First American Credit Union, Beloit, Wis., has created two programs to help offset the rising cost of education. The first, a scholarship fund, awards $500 to a high school senior who is both a member of the credit union and plans to pursue a college education. The second initiative awards students of all ages for their academic performance. Students may submit their report cards to the credit union in exchange for funds, which are deposited directly into their youth savings account. GPAs of 3.0 or higher will garner a cash reward.

Meriwest Credit Union, San Jose, Calif., called on Silicon Valley high school seniors to incorporate credit unions into a remedy for the current economic downturn and document their opinions in an essay. The respondents' work was entered into a competition for a chance to win a cash prize. The credit union's judges then selected a winner from each grade 9-12 based on clarity of expression, grammar and content.

Nassau Educators Federal Credit Union, Westbury, N.Y., awarded Colleen Agostinacchio, Stephanie Bennett, Cynthia Kopp and Adamandia Papazoglou $1,000 scholarships to pursue their careers as student teachers. The applicants were selected based on their responses to education-based questions.

Christian Community Credit Union, San Dimas, Calif., awarded a total of $35,000 in scholarships in 2010. The sum, awarded to students enrolled at a college, university or seminary is just one way the credit union is attempting to provide for its younger members. Some of the credit union's programs such as Student Advantage Banking, exclusively for members ages 17-24, educate students on how to save money while others such as Student Choice help fill gaps in educational funding through private loans.

Western Electric of Oklahoma Credit Union, Oklahoma City, awarded 25 scholarships to high school seniors residing in the metro area. Each grant was in the amount of $1,500, for a total of $38,500 donated by the credit union. The recipients entered the contest by submitting 400-word essays that discussed the impact of higher education on their lives.

Granite City Steel & Community Federal Credit Union, Granite City, Ill., awarded the $1,000 Nicole R. Thorp Scholarship to a high school senior participating in the "Get Mo' Green" club, an organization started by the credit union to teach members ages 14-18 how to manage and save money. A member need only open an account of $5 to become part of the club.