The cooperative difference in education

As the new year begins, and the sec­ond half of the 2025–2026 school year gets under­way, high school seniors are adding the fin­ish­ing touch­es on their col­lege appli­ca­tions and await­ing accep­tance let­ters.

Along­side these sig­nif­i­cant deci­sions comes a press­ing ques­tion: How will I pay for my edu­ca­tion? From tuition and cam­pus hous­ing to meal plans and text­books, the expens­es add up quick­ly, and for many fam­i­lies, the cost can be a bar­ri­er.

Accord­ing to recent fed­er­al data, South Car­oli­na stu­dents pur­su­ing high­er edu­ca­tion bor­rowed an aver­age of $35,000 to $40,000 in 2025. Across the coun­try, stu­dent loan debt has reached $1.81 tril­lion, with around $100 bil­lion issued in new fed­er­al and pri­vate loans every year. For stu­dents eager to pur­sue this next chap­ter in life, the real­i­ty can be a heavy bur­den.

That’s why York Elec­tric Coop­er­a­tive is com­mit­ted to invest­ing in the future of some of our out­stand­ing local seniors. Since 2018, YEC has award­ed near­ly $120,000 in schol­ar­ships to grad­u­at­ing seniors. These pro­grams are just one way your co-op invests in our next gen­er­a­tion of lead­ers. When we sup­port young peo­ple on their jour­ney to high­er edu­ca­tion or work­force train­ing, we strength­en the future com­mu­ni­ties we serve.

Touch­stone Ener­gy Schol­ar­ships

Each year, YEC awards five $3,000 Touch­stone Ener­gy Schol­ar­ships to grad­u­at­ing seniors at area high schools. Appli­cants must be York Elec­tric mem­bers and write a two-part essay on the coop­er­a­tive busi­ness mod­el and coop­er­a­tive prin­ci­ples, includ­ing how their own skills, expe­ri­ences and pas­sions could inspire future pro­grams to serve the next gen­er­a­tion of YEC mem­bers.

Tech­ni­cal Advan­tage Schol­ar­ship

YEC also offers one $3,000 Tech­ni­cal Advan­tage Schol­ar­ship to a local senior plan­ning to attend a tech­ni­cal col­lege. To apply, stu­dents do not need to be YEC mem­bers. Appli­cants must com­plete an essay that overviews South Carolina’s Ready SC ini­tia­tive and the val­ue of a skilled and ready work­force.

How to apply

Stu­dents can apply for either schol­ar­ship through York Electric’s web­site. Appli­cants should be pre­pared to upload a clear, high qual­i­ty pho­to, along with their cur­rent aca­d­e­m­ic tran­script. All appli­ca­tions should be uploaded by 11:59 p.m. on Mon­day, March 16.

By invest­ing in high­er edu­ca­tion and empow­er­ing young peo­ple to learn and grow, York Elec­tric Coop­er­a­tive con­tin­ues to abide by the coop­er­a­tive prin­ci­ples we were found­ed on.