AmericanTrucks Awards $2,500 Scholarship to Fourth-Generation Woodworker
Andrew Pankratz attends the American College of the Building Arts in South Carolina, one of three students chosen by AmericanTrucks’ owner.
Though post-secondary education is important, not enough love and attention goes into the trades. After all, why continue to feed degree inflation and the economic destruction it requires? Why not, instead, become a plumber, an electrician, even a metal worker? You walk away without the crippling debt, and you leave with an immediately employable skillset. After a couple of years, you’ll be able to rescue tech bros in their Tesla sci-fi props with your fully paid-off F-150 PowerBoost. Not to mention owning a home to put it in.
AmericanTrucks and their owner, Turn5, know the importance of the trades. Thus, alongside ExtremeTerrain and AmericanMuscle, award two scholarships each twice a year. On November 23, 2020, the three retailers announced their winners for the Spring 2021 semester.
The winner of the AmericanTrucks Student Scholarship Program for Spring 2021 is Andrew Pankratz. A fourth-generation woodworker, Pankratz currently attends the American College of the Building Arts in Charleston, South Carolina. The $2,500 scholarship he won will go into his tuition for the spring 2021 semester. Pankratz wrote in his winning essay of his plans to take his education and contribute “to a thriving community of trade workers who are dedicated to a hands-on approach to learning.”
Meanwhile, ExtremeTerrain< chose MyKenna Zettle, who is double-majoring in environmental studies and biology at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford. Zettle’s essay talked about how “science should be made accessible for any audience, no matter their socioeconomic or educational background.”
Finally, AmericanMuscle awarded their $2,500 scholarship to Daniel Hartman, who is attending the Universal Technical Institute. He plans to one day make an all-American muscle EV. We could certainly use more Mustang Mach-Es and less ego-trips on the road, for sure.
The deadline for the AmericanTrucks’ Fall 2021 scholarship is June 15. High school seniors and those already enrolled in a trade school can apply by submitting a 750- to 1,500-word essay answering how they will used their education to build the trades community. And that’s what we need in the United States right now. Anything to take the wind out of the degree-inflation sails.
Photos: AmericanTrucks
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