San Luis Obispo, Calif. – The Shinoda Foundation has awarded its highest honor, the Shinoda Scholar of the Year, to Gage Willey, a senior majoring in Agriculture and Environmental Plant Science at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
“Gage represents the best and brightest of aspiring horticulturalists,” says Bob Otsuka, president of the Shinoda Foundation. “Supporting budding entrepreneurs like him is one of the privileges the Foundation enjoys in furthering industry growth.”
A 21-year-old from Nicolaus, California, Willey is working toward a Bachelor of Science degree with a concentration in Greenhouse/Nursery Production. His goal is to own a production and retail nursery.
“Gage’s friendly, confident and professional attitude is perfect for a position that interacts extensively with faculty, staff, students and the public,” one of his employers said in a letter of recommendation.
Willey has been a student assistant manager at the greenhouses at Cal Poly, is Vice President of Pi Alpha Xi Honorary Horticultural Society; Vice President of the Cal Poly Horticulture Club; and is a member of the College Student Ag Council and the Cal Poly Crops Club.
He also volunteers for the FFA State Finals Competition. He has been on the Dean’s List since 2014 and has received several scholarships including the Shinoda Scholarship last year, the FFA California State Officer Scholarship and the California Garden Clubs Scholarship.
The Shinoda Foundation Board of Trustees awarded eleven scholarships this year totaling $21,000 and provided grants to the winners’ colleges and universities. Since 1965, The Shinoda Foundation has awarded more than $847,250 in scholarships to 684 students.
About the Joseph Shinoda Memorial Scholarship Foundation
The Shinoda Foundation was established in 1964 under the auspices of the California State Florists’ Association in memory of the late Joseph Shinoda, a highly regarded pioneer of that state’s floral industry. The foundation’s purpose is to encourage educational opportunities for young people interested in entering the industry. Incorporated as a separate entity in 1972, the foundation has awarded scholarships valued at more than $847,250 to 684 undergraduate floriculture students since 1965.
Information about applications for the Shinoda Foundation’s scholarships is sent each January to horticulture and floriculture departments at universities across the nation. Applications are available on the foundation’s website, www.shinodascholarship.org, and accepted from January until March 30 each year.
Information about making contributions to the foundation or about its scholarship program can be obtained from its website, www.shinodascholarship.org, or by writing to: Joseph Shinoda Memorial Scholarship Foundation Inc., 962 Pecho St., Morro Bay, CA 93442, or Pat Broering at pbroerin@gmail.com.
Source: Joseph Shinoda Memorial Scholarship Foundation