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Two MSU Seniors Awarded 2019 First Financial Bank Scholarships

Date: 12/20/2019

Two MSU Seniors Awarded 2019 First Financial Bank Scholarships

From the Mississippi Poutry Association, Inc.:

First Financial Bank of Carthage recently awarded two scholarships totaling $1,500 per year to two poultry science seniors at Mississippi State University. A committee of educators chose the recipients and the funding was provided through the Mississippi Poultry Foundation.

The winners of the 2019 scholarships are Rebecca Sloan from Madison, Alabama and Elizabeth Usery from Athens, Alabama. Michael Barnes, FFB Vice President, made the presentation at Mississippi State University recently. First Financial Bank is one of the state’s largest poultry industry lenders.

“First Financial Bank is glad to assist these future leaders in the poultry industry with their education at MSU,” Barnes said. “We are proud to be a supporter of the Mississippi Poultry Foundation’s efforts to assist poultry science students with their education.”

Sloan, who won a $750 scholarship, has worked internships in poultry processing for Pilgrim’s Pride and in logistics for JBS corporate. She has been admitted into a master’s program for genetics at the University of Alabama in Huntsville where she plans to take this knowledge and return to work in the poultry industry after graduation.

Usery, who won the other $750 scholarship, has previously done a production internship with Sanderson Farms in North Carolina and is currently doing undergraduate research under Dr. Aaron Kiess. Her plans upon graduation are to attend veterinary school or start her masters under Dr. Tom Tabler. 

This is the tenth year that First Financial Bank has made donations for scholarships to the Mississippi Poultry Foundation that have assisted 23 students with their education. First Financial was the first company to support the Miss. Poultry Foundation with an annual scholarship.