Jim McDonnell Memorial Scholarship
Jim McDonnell, The Fishing Professor, was a committed community leader and successful teacher and girls coach in the Clay Central School system for 35 years. Jim had a prolific career in coaching girl’s sports at Clay Central. He was a member (for 10 years) of the Girls Basketball Advisory Board, was a Jerry Golden award winner, a member of the Northwest Iowa Coaches and Officials Association Hall of Fame in 1982, and the Iowa Girls Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2012.
He also held true to his outdoor passions throughout his life, including fishing, hunting and trapping. He started the Iowa Great Lakes Fishing Club and was still serving as its President after 44 years. He was inducted into the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame in 2020. He had extensive knowledge of the outdoors and was an active outdoor writer for numerous newspapers, as well as an avid outdoor expert on both national and local television and radio programs. He ran a successful fishing guide business for 44 years on the Iowa Great Lakes.
Jim would sign off every newspaper column by saying “Enjoy every sunrise, keep your line tight, and may your aim be straight.” He lived by these words everyday.
The JIM MCDONNELL MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP will be given to a student or students who are seeking a career in either a Conservation or Wildlife field, or a Teaching field. The amount of the scholarship(s) are dependent on the number of applicants and scholarships awarded, minimum of $500.00 each. They will be given after completion of the first semester, paid directly to the student C/O the college or university. The participant(s) will be chosen by a committee. This scholarship is sponsored by The Jim McDonnell family, and The Iowa Great Lakes Fishing Club. The guidelines are as follows:
Scholarship should be based on need and the student as a whole, not on academic achievements alone.
Participant must be accepted to either a 2 or 4 year accredited college or university.
Participant must be a high school senior in good standing in both school and community.
Deadline for submission is MARCH 31st of the current academic year.
Recipients will be notified in April
You may also submit your application by mail. Click here to download the form and instructions on where to send it.
Additional scholarship opportunities supported by the Iowa Great Lakes Fishing Club
Steve Reighard Memorial Scholarship
Steve Reighard, a life-long lakes area resident and conservation officer, is honored with a newly established memorial scholarship fund at Iowa Lakes Community College. Through the scholarship, family and friends honor Reighard’s legacy by assisting students achieve their educational goals in the areas of criminal justice and environmental stewardship. Recipients will demonstrate strong commitments to conservation, community service, and service to others.
Priority awarding for the scholarship will be given to incoming freshmen who plan to enroll in Environmental Studies or Criminal Justice programs at Iowa Lakes and reside in Clay, Palo Alto, Dickinson, or Emmet counties. Two $500 scholarships will be awarded annually.