American Indian College Fund Receives $85,000 Grant From Nissan to Continue Scholarship Program

News provided by

Dec 16, 2010, 07:00 ET

DENVER, Dec. 16, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In support of American Indian students' pursuit of higher education, Nissan North America, Inc. (NNA) recently granted $85,000 to the American Indian College Fund to continue the Nissan Corporate Scholars Program. The program has provided scholarship support to Native scholars attending tribal colleges and mainstream universities for more than a decade.

Nissan also continued its sponsorship of the Fund's annual Flame of Hope Gala. A portion of this gift went towards the 2010 event, which annually raises both awareness and funds in an effort to help students in Indian Country achieve their educational and career goals.

"Nissan has partnered with the American Indian College Fund for more than 10 years," said David Reuter, vice president, corporate communications, Nissan Americas. "We are proud to continue our support to provide American Indian students the opportunity to pursue a college degree."

"Thanks to Nissan, more Native American students can realize their dreams of graduating from college," said Richard B. Williams, President and CEO of the American Indian College Fund. "We are grateful for the opportunity to help students acquire knowledge and skills that will benefit their communities and our nation as a whole."

The Nissan Corporate Scholars recipients for 2010 are:

Aimee Pond - University of Wyoming
Betty Handley - Oglala Lakota College
Caressa La Mere - Little Priest Tribal College
Corinne Cameron - University of Alaska Anchorage
Deidre Rogers - Navajo Technical College
Jeremy R. Pittman - Purdue University
Joshua Phair - Northwest Indian College
LaShawnia Tso - Haskell Indian Nations University
Lee Ann Minifie - Institute of American Indian Arts
Monica Patneaud - United Tribes Technical College
Owen Paul Gramling- Salish Kootenai College
Phillip Medina - Central Michigan University
Shallee Baker-Graff - Northwest Indian College
Stephanie Woody - Northern Arizona University
Terra LaMotte-Harvey - Dine College

About Nissan North America

In North America, Nissan's operations include automotive styling, engineering, consumer and corporate financing, sales and marketing, distribution and manufacturing. Nissan is dedicated to improving the environment under the Nissan Green Program 2010 and has been recognized as a 2010 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. More information on Nissan in North America and the complete line of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles can be found online at www.NissanUSA.com and www.InfinitiUSA.com.

About the American Indian College Fund

With its credo "Educating the Mind and Spirit," the American Indian College Fund is the nation's largest private provider of scholarships for American Indian students, providing an average of 6,000 scholarships annually for students seeking to better their lives and communities through education and support to the nation's 33 accredited tribal colleges and universities. For more information about the American Indian College Fund, please visit www.collegefund.org

SOURCE American Indian College Fund