New Hanover County ABC Board will be providing a $5,000 award for up to four graduating high school seniors in New Hanover County for the 2027-2028 school year. The Underage Drinking Prevention & Education Award exists to encourage young adults to research the consequences of underage drinking.
New Hanover County ABC Board is now accepting scholarship applications for a $5,000 award for up to four graduating high school seniors in New Hanover County. The Underage Drinking Prevention & Education Award exists to encourage young adults to research the consequences of underage drinking.
The scholarship program is open to all students in grade 12 and residing in New Hanover County, regardless of academic performance in high school. Up to five scholarships of $5,000 will be awarded.
The scholarship may be applied toward vocational/trade school, community college, or four-year university. The $5,000 award is unrestricted, meaning that funds can be used for any education-related expense deemed appropriate by the attending institution.
*Students who have family members employed by the NC ABC Commission or New Hanover County ABC Board are not eligible for the scholarship program.
To apply, students must submit a complete application through our Scholarship Portal. The application consists of:
1. A research essay discussing the facts/dangers of underage drinking. Applicants can choose from a list of provided research questions, or come up with their own.
- Must reflect the student’s own research, writing and original thinking.
- References should be clearly identified within the text (i.e. parenthetical citations, footnotes, etc.), and include a Bibliography/Works cited page.
2. A Plan of Action, developed and carried out under the direction of a sponsoring teacher, to inform their classmates of their research findings.
- The application will require a detailed description of the Plan of Action, as well as photo evidence that the Plan of Action took place.
- A sponsoring teacher may sponsor more than one student.
The program will be accepting submissions beginning October 1st, 2026. Complete applications can be submitted through the NHC ABC Scholarship Portal by January 17th, 2027 at 11:59 p.m.
Scholarship recipients will be notified via email and/or postal service by May 31, 2027.
Scholarship awards will be sent to the attending institution for the 2027-2028 school year by June 30th, 2027.
The scholarship program is open to all students in grade 12 and residing in New Hanover County, regardless of academic performance in high school. Up to four scholarships of $5,000 will be awarded.
The scholarship may be applied toward vocational/trade school, community college, or four-year university. The $5,000 award is unrestricted, meaning that funds can be used for any education-related expense deemed appropriate by the attending institution.
*Students who have family members employed by the NC ABC Commission or New Hanover County ABC Board are not eligible for the scholarship program.
To apply, students must submit a complete application through our Scholarship Portal. The application consists of:
1. A research essay discussing the facts/dangers of underage drinking. Applicants can choose from a list of provided research questions, or come up with their own.
- Must reflect the student’s own research, writing and original thinking.
- References should be clearly identified within the text (i.e. parenthetical citations, footnotes, etc.), and include a Bibliography/Works cited page.
2. A Plan of Action, developed and carried out under the direction of a sponsoring teacher, to inform their classmates of their research findings.
- The application will require a detailed description of the Plan of Action, as well as photo evidence that the Plan of Action took place.
- A sponsoring teacher may sponsor more than one student.
The program will be accepting submissions beginning October 1st, 2026. Complete applications can be submitted through the NHC ABC Scholarship Portal by January 17th, 2027.
Scholarship recipients will be notified via email and/or postal service by May 31, 2027.
Scholarship awards will be sent to the attending institution for the 2027-2028 school year by June 30th, 2027.
