Fisher Scholarship to be awarded through MCCF The Zonta Club Bradford has established its scholarship as an endowed fund – the Zonta Club Bradford-Ruth B. Fisher Scholarship Fund – at the McKean County Community Foundation. The Zonta Club scholarship, along with more than 60 additional McKean County scholarship funds held at the Foundation, will be open for applications from January 15 through February 25, 2026. All scholarship applications are submitted through an online portal that can be accessed at the Foundation’s website at www.mckeancountyfoundation.org.

This scholarship honors the memory of Ruth B. Fisher, a Bradford native, and a highly active Zonta Club member for 23 years. Upon her death in 1978, she named the Zonta Club Bradford as a beneficiary of her estate and, with her generous bequest, Zonta Club leaders established this scholarship in her memory. The Zonta Club Bradford has entrusted the scholarship to be administered and awarded through the McKean County Community Foundation on an annual basis.

The qualifications for the scholarship are in keeping with the mission of Zonta International, which empowers women through service and advocacy, by providing financial assistance to qualified women seeking promising career opportunities. It is open to senior female students graduating from Bradford Area High School who are pursuing higher education at an accredited institution. Additional criteria that will be considered include work experience, community service, and extracurricular activities. Special consideration may be given to an applicant who is related to a Zonta Club member.

The club plans to award four $1,000 scholarships in 2026.”We are very pleased to partner with the McKean County Community Foundation to administer our scholarship and to ensure its longevity far into the future,” said Zonta Club scholarship committee co-chairs Karen Buchheit and Linda Gault. They noted students will benefit from an easier process for accessing and submitting the scholarship application using the foundation portal.The McKean County Community Foundation, an affiliate of the Community Foundation of the Northern Alleghenies, is a non-profit organization that strives to strengthen our region through development, stewardship and grant making as it collaborates with donors to achieve their philanthropic goals.