Palmetto Scholarship – South Carolina Bankers Association

For more than a century, the South Carolina Bankers Association has been blessed with the strong support of its member institutions and their employees. To reinforce its commitment to education and assist students with the ever-increasing cost of higher education, the SCBA will continue its scholarship giving with the SCBA Palmetto Scholarship. A key component of the program is the emphasis on offering scholarships to the children of employees of SCBA-member banks who are college students. The Bankers Association believes offering scholarships to deserving children of bank employees helps demonstrate both its appreciation to member banks and their employees and serves as a means for building a path to a better, more prosperous South Carolina.

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Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been awarded over the years to deserving college students through money raised by the Young Bankers Division Scholarship Golf Tournament and a significant transfer of funds from our Education Foundation. The SCBA understands that many students today often find themselves burdened by significant debt upon graduation. By offering scholarships to children of bank employees, the SCBA seeks to help students pursue higher education while also laying the foundation for the next generation of South Carolina’s leaders. Each scholarship is $1,000.

Additionally, the SCBA Board of Directors is honoring the memory of two members of the South Carolina banking family whose lives were tragically taken during a bank robbery in 2017. We have established two $2,500 scholarships named after Katie Skeen and Donna Major of the former CresCom Bank. The Palmetto Scholarship Committee will select two individuals from the pool of applicants who will receive the “Katie Skeen Palmetto Scholarship” and the “Donna Major Palmetto Scholarship.”

To be considered for a SCBA Palmetto Scholarship students must:

Be a resident of South Carolina;
Have a parent who lives in South Carolina and works for a SCBA member bank in South Carolina OR be a part-time employee at a member bank working a minimum of 20 hours per week;
Be a full-time junior or senior undergraduate at an accredited four-year college or university in South Carolina during the fall semester of 2021;
Have a minimum grade-point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale;
Be active in his or her school and community, demonstrate a solid work ethic, and possess strong leadership abilities, good teamwork and a desire to succeed; and
Submit a resume and letter of recommendation from a dean or professor when completing the online application. If you are a part time employee, you must also have a letter of recommendation from senior management.

The submission process for consideration in the SCBA Palmetto Scholarship involves:

Completing the electronic application (handwritten and/or incomplete applications will not be processed),
Upload a resume, and
Upload a letter of recommendation from a dean or professor. (Part-Time Employee: a letter of recommendation from Sr. Management)

How to Apply

The application deadline is March 18, 2022. Unfortunately, applications submitted after this date will not be considered. The Scholarship Committee will review and grade the applications. Students will be notified in the spring. A dessert reception and check presentation will be held Tuesday, May 17 at the Palmetto Club in Columbia. Stay tuned for more details! Please note, we receive a significant number of applications from highly qualified students and the process of narrowing down a large applicant pool is challenging, especially when it is composed of so many highly qualified candidates. Unfortunately, not all applicants will receive a scholarship.

Once the application closes each year, the Scholarship Committee will review and grade all applications and the students will be notified in the spring. A dessert reception and check presentation will be held in May. Stay tuned for more details on that event!

Have questions? Visit our Palmetto Scholarship Q & A page.

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2021 Palmetto Scholarship Winners

Anderson Brothers Bank
Payton Barnhill, child of Tina Barnhill, Conway

Arthur State Bank
Gabriella Evans, child of Jessica S. Evans, Clinton
Haleigh Palmer, child of Dena Lancaster, Union

Bank of America
James Brighton, child of John Brighton, Hilton Head Island
Bailey Cardone, child of Matthew Scott Cardone, Greenville
Kaylin LeCroy, child of Christopher LeCroy, Clemson
Wesley Munn, child of Mark Munn, Charleston
Mattison Tenry, child of Deanna J Mann, Clemson

Bank of Clarendon
Brynne Baxley, child of Lisa Reed, Summerton
Elizabeth McInnis, child of Stacey McInnis, Manning

Bank of the Lowcountry
Jim Bunton III, child of James M Bunton Jr., Walterboro

Bank of York
Abby Good, child of Beverly Good, York

Carolina Bank and Trust
Caroline Falcone, child of Brain Falcone, Florence

Coastal Carolina National Bank
Ryan Riedinger, child of Marjorie Riedinger, Garden City

Coastal States Bank
Jack Spiehs, child of Ric Spiehs, Hilton Head Island

Community First Bank
Kathleen Champagne, child of Jennifer M Champagne, Greenville
Lakyn Tippett, child of Rhonda Tippett, Seneca

Conway National Bank
Olivia Sweatt, child of Roger Sweatt, Conway

Countybank
Savannah Huskey, child of Annette Scott, Greenwood
Nick Mumford, child of Dayle Mumford, Greenwood

Dedicated Community Bank
Davis Ivey, child of Jim Ivey, Darlington

First Capital Bank
Caroline Kornahrens, child of Brian Kornahrens, Charleston

First Citizens Bank
Josh Coleman, child of Russell Coleman, Columbia
Roger Hemingway, child of Cetra Hemingway, Conway
Delta Pennington, child of Dori Pennington, Aiken
Maddie Risinger, child of Gregory Risinger, Columbia

First Community Bank
Rachel Hair, employee of First Community Bank, under Drew Painter, Lexington
Joanna Kiker, employee of First Community Bank, under Travis McCormack, Columbia

First Horizon
Gray Whitener, child of Tripp Whitener, Columbia

First Palmetto Bank
Caroline Best, child of Marvin Best, Camden

GrandSouth Bank
Harrison Wood, child of John Beale Wood Jr., Greenville

Merrill Lynch
Cassey Nicholl, child of Cheryl Nicholl, Myrtle Beach

Sandhills Bank
Anna Brewer, child of Ralph Brewer, North Myrtle Beach
Jessica Brewer, child of Ralph Brewer, North Myrtle Beach

South Atlantic Bank
Lawton Branham, child of Beth Branham, Myrtle Beach
Sarah Johnson, child of Stacy Johnson, Myrtle Beach
Aaron Minter, Jr., child of Travis A. Minter, Myrtle Beach

South State Bank
Callum Allison, child of Michelle Allison Williams, Greenville
Michael Brunet, child of Claudette Brunet, North Charleston
Kaila Gleaton, child of Tammy Gleaton, Greenville
Jade Huang, child of Nancy Cox, Ellorree
Wallace Townsend, child of Frank Townsend, Aiken
Raven Walters, employee of South State Bank, under Katie Moore, Columbia
Marissa Wheeler, employee of South State Bank, under Rebecca Overmier, Mount Pleasant

Synovus
Sydney Tekac, child of Jerry Tekac, Charleston
Kristen Wixey, child of Angela Wixey, Sumter

TD Bank, N.A.
Jackson Ashley, child of Stephanie Ashley, Greenville
Kate Black, child of Tony Black, Lexington
Holly Granger, child of Jianwen Fan Granger, Charleston
Andrew Hunt, employee of TD Bank, N.A., under Joseph Chad Radcliffe, Lexington
Jacob Koenemann, child of Mary Koenemann, Greenville
Kayla Thomas, child of Susane Bloomfield, Lexington
Reet Verma, child of Rajesh Verma, Lexington

The Citizens Bank
Mabry Godbold, child of Joel Foster, Murrells Inlet

The People’s Bank
Porter Kirven, child of Coleman Kirven, Anderson
Jordan Whitfield, child of David Whitfield, Anderson

United Bank
*Dalton Arseneau, child of Douglas Arseneau, Garden City
*Carley Blackwell, child of Christy Blackwell, Taylors

United Community Bank
Joel Kenneth, child of Pittard Paige Pittard, Easley
Lauren Woods, child of Sharon Woods, Laurens

*Recipient of the CresCom Memorial Palmetto Scholarship