A record number of 22 local students are heading off to tertiary institutions this month with Bay of Plenty Education Trust scholarships lightening the financial load.

Bay of Plenty Education Trust Science, Technology and Emerging Industries Scholarships are valued at $5,750 each. The scholarship has also been awarded to 10 Eastern Bay of Plenty students.

BOP Education Trust chairman Roger Loveridge with, from left, Hannah Brydon of Katikati College, Andrew Simmons of Tauranga Boys' College, and Brylie Apeldoorn of Otumoetai College.

Trust chairman Roger Loveridge says extra scholarships were awarded this year to mark special occasions.

'We are celebrating 15 years since the scholarships were first awarded and to mark the milestone of more than $1 million in scholarships awarded to date,” says Roger.

Front, Hannah Brydon; Kyla Osborne; Abby Bridgman; Nicola Turner; Brylie Apeldoorn; Casey Park. Middle, Leo Fauvel; Krystal Mitschak; Andrew Simmons; Hannah Payne; Helena Cooper; Kane Hansen. Back, Daniel Hart; Eli Ahipene; Dominic Kock; Ariana Moffat; Clementine Davis; Monique Pointon; Charlotte Dobbie. Absent Ella Williams; Jacob Magee; Ben Warren.

This year the 32 scholarships awarded have a value of $184,000. The scholarships are for selected students from secondary schools along the Western and Eastern Bay of Plenty coastline, between Katikati and Opotiki. Schools with roles of more than 1,000 pupils received three scholarships in the recent round, with two scholarships available to the others. The scholarships are for exemplary students about to embark on tertiary education in the fields of science, technology and emerging industries. The recipients are determined by the individual schools.

To date, 252 scholars have gained scholarships, equating to a total of $1,153,500.

The Western Bay of Plenty recipients are: Abby Bridgman and Hannah Brydon of Katikati College; Kyla Osborne and Kane Hansen of Aquinas College; Casey Park and Helena Cooper of Bethlehem College; Leo Fauvel and Krystal Mitschak of Te Puke High School; Clementine Davis, Charlotte Dobbie and Monique Pointon of Mt Maunganui College; Daniel Hart, Brylie Apeldoorn and Nicola Turner of Otumoetai College; Eli Ahipene and Dominic Koch of Papamoa College; Ben Warren, Jacob Magee and Andrew Simmons of Tauranga Boys' College; Ariana Moffatt, Hannah Payne and Ella Williams of Tauranga Girls' College.

The Trust also runs a future leaders' development programme. The trustees also provide regular financial support to Priority One's Instep trade training programme and also to the intermediate schools' participation in the world-wide Future Problem Solving competition.

Eastern Bay of Plenty scholarship recipients are: Dalyn Anderson and Jared Emms of Edgecumbe College; Reegan Reid of Tarawera High School; Frank Ross and Rachel Gullett of Opotiki College; Lemuel Peria, Sarah Massey and Conor Armstrong of Trident High School, and Max Clarke and Jessica Aldridge of Whakatane High School.