Arkansas Trucking Association

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ATA Announces New Scholarship for Arkansas Technician Students

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Arkansas Trucking Association is pleased to announce it is accepting applications for a new scholarship opportunity for students interested in pursuing a career as a medium and heavy duty truck technician. ATA has established the Carl Tapp Memorial Scholarship Fund to encourage growth in the state’s technician workforce and to help assure that the safest, most knowledgeable and skilled technicians are working on the trucks and trailers on our nation’s roads.

Applicants must be graduating seniors from accredited high schools. Two scholarships for up to $7,500 will be awarded for students attending a two-semester (30-hour minimum) medium and heavy duty truck technician program at an Arkansas institution.

“The industry needs a well-educated cohort of new technicians under the hoods and over the motherboards of increasingly technological trucks and trailers,” said Shannon Newton, ATA president. “We are eager to ease the financial burden for students with technical aptitude who want to be part of our industry and a part of the future of transportation.”

In 2016, ATA’s Maintenance & Technology Council Committee formed the Technician Curriculum Advisory Committee to partner with educational institutions around the state to help shape programs that will provide a skilled labor force now and into the future.

The Advisory Committee formed the Carl Tapp Memorial Scholarship Fund to encourage young bright minds to pursue a path to success as technicians in the trucking industry. The scholarship is named for the late Carl Tapp, the Council’s first chairman, who was known for recognizing and empowering talent in the next generation of technicians.

“Carl meant so much to the industry and touched so many lives. By supporting technician students financially, we hope to honor his passion for recognizing and encouraging new talent in the field to make the workforce stronger and more sustainable,” said Tapp’s colleage Kenneth Calhoun, fleet optimization manager at Altec.

Applications will be accepted through March 16, 2018, and ATA plans to name recipients by May 1 for students beginning coursework in August 2018 or January 2019, based on individual program requirements. Contact Sarah Newman (sarahnewman@arkansastrucking.com) for more information about the Scholarship Fund, and find the application at www.arkansastrucking.com/tech-scholarship.

Contact Us

Arkansas Trucking Association
PO Box 3476 (72203)
1401 West Capitol Ave.
Suite 185
Little Rock, AR 72201

(501) 372-3462 | Phone
(501) 376-1810 | Fax

Our Mission

  • PROTECT the collective interests of trucking companies in the political and regulatory arenas.
  • PROMOTE the dynamics of trucking so that people have a better understanding of the link between America's primary freight delivery system and the standard of living they enjoy.
  • SERVE our members to help them to grow their business and their profits
You are here: Home News In Brief ATA Announces New Scholarship for Arkansas Technician Students