The John Hintermister High School Scholarship

To encourage youth activities consistent with our mission, the Alachua Audubon Society offers scholarships ($250) to Alachua County high school seniors who demonstrate an interest in wildlife or conservation. The expenditure of the scholarship is not limited to academics and may be used in any fashion the student finds desirable. The number of awards may vary annually.

This program is named in memory of John Hintermister (1943-2019), a founding member of the Alachua Audubon Society, having signed its charter on January 11, 1960, a little over a month after his 16th birthday. He eventually served as its president, and spent many years on its board of directors. In addition to providing inspiration to so many of us, he personally managed to support deserving students through scholarship as well.

The award will be based upon the following criteria:

  • Keen interest in the environment, nature, and/or conservation
  • Involvement in extracurricular environmental/nature activities
  • Academic record
  • Teacher/counselor recommendation

Eligibility Requirements:

To be considered for a scholarship, an applicant must:

    • Be a resident of Alachua County.
    • Be a student at the 12th grade level.
    • Be in good academic standing

Due Dates:

The deadline to apply is Friday of the 3rd week in March for the scholarships awarded in April. Any application or recommendation letter submitted after this date will not be considered.

How to Apply:

Please fill in the application information as completely and accurately as possible.

The application form is available online here.

Two references with letters of recommendation are required:

  1. one from a teacher or counselor who can confirm you academic record,
  2. the second from a teacher, club sponsor or volunteer supervisor who can speak to your keen interest in the environment and involvement in extracurricular, environmental, and nature activities.

Letters of recommendation should be in the form of a .pdf and emailed to scholarship@AlachuaAudubon.org

Procedure for Awarding of the Scholarship:

  1. The award will be decided by the AAS Scholarship Committee based on a completed application form and letters of recommendation.
  2. The Questionnaire answers will be scored by each Committee member to determine the winner.
  3. All applicants shall be notified by email as to whether they are chosen or not.
  4. The scholarship award will be made payable to the student.
  5. If the committee feels that no applicant meets our criteria and would be worthy of receiving the scholarship, none will be awarded that year and the money will be reserved for the following year.
  6. The decision of the committee is final.

Contact us at scholarship@alachuaaudubon.org if you have any questions.