Oklahoma State University and the Oklahoma Youth Expo have partnered to provide four $5,000 scholarships to high school seniors.

OSU will provide two $5,000 scholarships which will be matched by the OYE for a total of $20,000. These four scholarships will be awarded in March to high school seniors who are participants of the OYE.

Scholarship recipients will be members of the prestigious OYE Academic All-State Class.

"We are very excited about this new partnership with the OYE and the opportunity to provide Oklahoma's rural youth with scholarship opportunities," said Robert E. Whitson, vice president for agricultural programs at OSU and dean and director, Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. "This partnership is a very natural fit and this scholarship will open the doors for young people across the state. It's definitely a win-win for Oklahoma, Oklahoma's youth and OSU."

The OYE annually provides activities for nearly 7,000 Oklahoma 4-H and FFA members and is the state's largest youth event. In 2009 the OYE awarded approximately $2 million in scholarships and awards to the state's rural youth.

"This is a wonderful opportunity for young people to get financial support for college and ultimately become leaders of our state," said Jeremy Rich, OYE executive director. "The OYE is very appreciative of this presentation of matching funds to benefit OYE participants."