Rio Grande Announces Fruth Pharmacy Technician Scholarship

RIO GRANDE, Ohio – The University of Rio Grande and Rio Grande Community College, in partnership with Fruth Pharmacy, has announced the Fruth Pharmacy Technician Scholarship.

The $2,000 scholarship is available to second-semester Rio Grande students in the one-year Pharmacy Technician certificate program.

The scholarship also provides recipients with employment following graduation for a minimum of 18 to 24 month. Pharmacy Technician faculty and development staff at Rio submit candidates, with Fruth selecting the scholarship recipient.

“I’m very grateful for the scholarship and the opportunity it provides me to gain hands-on experience,” said Shannon Imboden, the first recipient of the Fruth Pharmacy Technician Scholarship. “I’m guaranteed that once I’m finished with school I’ll have a job, and I know that is better for me and my children’s life. I don’t even know how to express my gratitude for that.”

The scholarship funds were part of a $5,000 charitable gift from Fruth Pharmacy. The gift also supplies Rio with licensing for the PDX Pharmacy System software commonly utilized in professional pharmacies, as well as an Information Technology Externship Program. The externship program will give Rio IT students an opportunity for experiential learning through Fruth’s corporate offices.

“This generous gift from Fruth Pharmacy benefits the entire Pharmacy Technician program,” said program coordinator and instructor Keith McKinniss, R.Ph. “All of our students will be better prepared to join the professional ranks and make an immediate positive impact throughout our communities. I am truly thankful for the opportunity to work closely with Fruth Pharmacy in our endeavor to best educate future pharmacy technicians.”

Fruth Pharmacy President and Chairman Lynne Fruth presented the $5,000 gift to Rio Grande President Michelle R. Johnston in October. The gift further demonstrates the Fruth tradition of outstanding community support with a commitment to education.

Fruth Pharmacy was founded in 1952 in Point Pleasant, West Virginia, and has grown into a regional chain of 26 stores serving Ohio and West Virginia.

“We’re really trying to make a difference in our communities,” Lynne Fruth said. “I feel like Rio Grande is a quality university and offers some quality programs for kids in this area where they don’t have to go far away from home in a cost-effective manner. Its great to be philanthropic, but its even greater to invest money with an institution that provides benefits all the way around.”