Trio of Burke students selected for Golden LEAF scholarships

The Golden LEAF Foundation announced on Monday that 215 rural North Carolina students, including three from Burke County, have each been selected to receive scholarships worth up to $14,000.

The newly selected 2026 Golden LEAF scholarship recipients from Burke County are recent high school graduates Briseida Gregorio and Jacorian Logan of Freedom High School and Zane Taylor of East Burke High School. Gregorio and Taylor will attend Lenoir-Rhyne University, while Logan is headed to Appalachian State University.

“I am proud to recognize Briseida, Jacorian, and Zane from Burke County for their achievements,” Rep. Hugh Blackwell said. “Earning the Golden LEAF Scholarship reflects your dedication to your future and to the communities you represent.”

The Golden LEAF Foundation, which is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Rocky Mount, works to increase economic opportunity in N.C.’s rural and tobacco-dependent communities through leadership in grantmaking, collaboration, innovation, and stewardship as an independent and perpetual foundation. For more than 25 years, Golden LEAF has provided lasting impact to tobacco-dependent, economically distressed, and rural areas of the state.

“We are proud to award scholarships to hardworking students with deep roots in their communities,” Golden LEAF President and CEO Scott T. Hamilton said. “Chosen from more than 1,400 applicants, these students represent the future of rural North Carolina. We look forward to their accomplishments as they continue their education and become North Carolina’s next generation of leaders.”

High school seniors entering college as first-year students are eligible for a $3,500 scholarship each year for up to four years of undergraduate study at a participating four-year N.C. college or university. Additionally, community college transfer students are eligible for $3,500 a year for up to three years of undergraduate study.

The Golden LEAF Scholarship Program prioritizes students who demonstrate clear career goals and a commitment to returning to rural N.C. communities after graduation. In alignment with the Golden LEAF Foundation’s mission, the scholarship also honors the state’s agricultural heritage by supporting students with personal or family ties to its tobacco industry. This focus recognizes the historical and economic significance of tobacco growing, production, and processing to the families and rural communities that Golden LEAF serves.

Scholarship recipients may also participate in the Golden LEAF Rural Internship Initiative, which provides Golden LEAF Scholars with professional work experience related to their career field in a rural N.C. community. The Golden LEAF Foundation supplies funding to pay interns up to $18 per hour for as many as 400 hours of work, with internships taking place between May and August.

The Golden LEAF Foundation established the Golden LEAF Scholarship Program to broaden educational opportunities and provide support to students from rural counties with the goal that recipients will return and contribute to rural communities after graduation. Since starting the scholarship program in 2000, Golden LEAF has given out more than 6,300 scholarships to help North Carolinians attend participating public or private colleges and universities in the state.

There are currently 645 Golden LEAF Scholars attending four-year institutions in the state. The North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority — a state agency established in 1965 that promotes access to higher education by administering financial aid and savings programs, informing students and families about paying for college, teaching educators about financial aid administration, and advocating for resources to support students — administers the scholarship program and selects students for awards.

“Congratulations to the students in my district who have earned the Golden LEAF Scholarship,” Sen. Warren Daniel said. “This honor recognizes your commitment to academic excellence, and I look forward to seeing what you will accomplish in the years ahead.”

Visit GoldenLEAF.org for more information about the Golden LEAF Foundation and its programs.

— JM