Jill Eversdyk

Texas A&M Student Wins ISA Buffington Memorial Scholarship

Texas A&M student Jill Eversdyk was chosen as the recipient of the 2006-07 Gary L. Buffington Memorial Scholarship.

Created in 2003 as a memorial to former I.D.A. Executive Vice President Gary Buffington, the scholarship is awarded each year to a rising senior in a qualified undergraduate industrial distri-bution program. The ISA Educational Foundation selection committee evaluated candidates from six colleges with programs in industrial distribution.

Eversdyk graduated in the spring of 2007 and plans to begin a career in outside sales with an industrial distribution company.

"Jill has been an outstanding student in the Texas A&M Industrial Distribution program," said Dr. F. Barry Lawrence, coordinator of the university's industrial distribution program. "Her academic achievements have been solid, and she has also been active in student leadership."

Eversdyk is an officer for the Professional Association for Industrial Distribution (PAID), one of the largest student-run organizations on the Texas A&M campus. A recipient of the Houston Electrical League scholarship, Eversdyk is also a member of the industrial distribution program's Sigma Delta honor society and the National Dean's List. She completed an internship with Crawford Electric Supply's Houston branch last summer and will serve as an intern this summer at GE Aero Energies in Houston.

"I am honored to receive the Gary L. Buffington Scholarship from ISA. One of the best parts was being able to tell my parents that I will be able to pay all of my college expenses next year instead of just half," Eversdyk said after learning she received the award.

The ISA Educational Foundation awarded the $10,000 scholarship during the opening session at the Industrial Supply Conference & Trade Fair Saturday, May 20, in San Antonio, Texas.

"All of the candidates we interviewed were very strong and would have made excellent recipients. However, Jill seemed to have a unique combination of strong academic performance, a get-it-done leadership style, concern for her community and a very infectious, friendly personality," said Steve Buffington, the Buffington family representative who served on the scholarship selection committee.

"Jill was not only sound scholastically, but she handled herself very well in the interview process. She will make a welcome addition to the industry when she graduates next year," added Ray Reynertson of the Sturtevant Richmont division of Ryeson Corporation, chairman of the scholar-ship selection committee.