Mar 5, 2015

Looking for Revolutionary Students … with Plant Experience By Tim Hodson

Do you know a college student working toward a degree in ornamental horticulture business or a degree in plant breeding?

If you do, then you should tell them about Syngenta Flowers’ Goldsmith Scholarship Program – and you should tell them now!

Syngenta Flowers is offering not one but two $7,500 scholarships to college students who have shown high potential in the fields of plant breeding (Glenn Goldsmith Breeding Excellence Scholarship) and ornamental horticulture business (Goldsmith Seeds Floriculture Business Advancement Scholarship) through scholastic excellence and experience.

If you know a student that might be interested in these scholarships they need to act fast because the deadline for applications is March 13!

The student must be an undergraduate, master’s or doctoral candidate at an accredited four-year university during the 2015-16 academic school year, and carry a minimum of a 3.0 cumulative grade point average.

Applicants need to submit a cover letter indicating the scholarship for which they wish to be considered along with their resume; name of the university they are attending and degree they are working toward with targeted graduation date; a letter of recommendation from the applicant’s professor or academic advisor; an essay between 1,000 and 1,500 words describing what “Revolutionizing the Plant Experience” means to their career path; and a high resolution photo of the applicant.

This information must be submitted to goldsmithscholarship@gmail.com by March 13, 2015.

Additional details for applying for either of these scholarships can be found here.

The clock is ticking “¦

– Tim

Costco Creates New Credit Card Alliances

Warehouse retailer Costco has signed a deal with Visa to be its credit card network provider. The company also made an agreement with Citibank to be the exclusive issue of its co-branded credit card. Both deals become effective in April 2016. Last month, Costco announced it would be discontinuing its 16-year credit card agreement with American Express next March.

Wal-Mart Continues to Grow in Canada

Wal-Mart is taking advantage of Target’s recent decision to pull out of the Canadian marketplace. The mass merchant plans to open 29 supercenter stores in Canada this year, in addition to the 35 it opened in 2014. Most of the new store growth will be at existing stores that are expanding and adding full grocery departments. By the end of this year, Wal-Mart expects to have 396 stores in Canada.

Lowe’s Educational Foundation Fills Toolbox for Schools

The Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation recently awarded $2.3 million in Lowe’s Toolbox for Education grants to 515 schools in 46 states during the program’s fall 2014 grant cycle. The grants will fund public school projects, including technology and safety improvements, library renovations, walking trails and outdoor learning environments. Lowe’s awarded $4.7 million in grants to more than 1,100 schools this past year.