2008 scholarship winners at the awards breakfast, May 22. On the left is Mayor Mayor Michael Fressola of  Manchester. On the right is Mayor Dave Siddons of Island Heights and immediately next to him, Mayor Vincent Barella of Point Pleasant Beach. The names of all the scholars are here.

Scholarship Application

Scholarship Rules

Scholarship Winners 2007

Scholarship Winners 2006

One of the main functions of the Ocean County Mayors’ Association is the scholarships that the OCMA provides to high school seniors. The scholarship program was developed by the late Mayor William T. Hornidge of Beachwood, Mayor Russell Corby of Pine Beach, and myself 16 years ago.

Funding was initially provided by a golf outing held the last Thursday in August each year. Since then the OCMA has added a golf digest, with the details on each of the golf courses in Ocean County. Between these two fundraising efforts, the OCMA has developed the premier scholarship program in Ocean County and has provided over $ 375,000.00 in scholarships. Corporate sponsors and advertisers in the Golf Digest have made this scholarship program an unqualified success.

The scholarships are broken down as follows:

1.) Each year, the general scholarship provides: a.) A $1,000 scholarships to a senior from each of the county's 17 high schools. b.) Six $500.00 scholarships to vo-tech students going on to future vo-tech training. c.) The William T. Hornidge Memorial Scholarship of $1,000 to the best student in Ocean County

2.) An annual award of $5,000 to Ocean County College for their scholarship fund. These scholarships are awarded to entering freshmen based on the college’s criteria for need.

The general scholarship, the William T. Hornidge Memorial scholarship, and the vo-tech scholarships are determined by the Ocean County Superintendent of Schools’ Roundtable. Applications for these scholarships may be obtained by high school seniors from their high school guidance office, or online at www.ocmayors.com. (click on Scholarshop Application above.) Completed applications are to be returned to the guidance office in accordance with instructions from the school. The scholarships are awarded the middle of May at the Ocean County Superintendent’s Roundtable Student Recognition Breakfast.

In addition to these scholarships, some private donors have expressed interest in setting up endowment scholarships. The OCMA, which has been designated as a 501c3 organization, will help these donors set up the guidelines for their scholarships.

Each of these scholarship programs requires help and donations from individuals and companies within the county. It is our hope to make this premier scholarship even more successful. If you wish to help,  please call (732) 270-6415. You will find more information about the OCMA by exploring this web site.

In the early years of the golf outings, Bill Hornidge had a statement that set forth the reason for the golf outings and the hard work that was associated with it. “This one’s for the kids”.

While it didn’t help my golf game, it did put everything in the proper perspective.

David M. Siddons, President,
Ocean County Mayors' Association
Mayor, Borough of Island Heights