The American Floral Endowment (AFE) has announced that applications are now open for the Altman Family Scholarship and the Paul Ecke, Jr. Scholarship.
These merit-based scholarships are for graduate students who have the skills and passion to become floricultural scientists and educators.
Applicants must be in the process of successfully completing either a Bachelor's or Master's degree in horticulture or a related field (e.g., agricultural engineering, entomology, agricultural marketing and economics, plant pathology, etc.) and must have the intention of pursuing an MS or Ph.D. degree on a full-time basis. Learn more here.
© American Floral Endowment
The Altman Family Scholarship was established by Ken and Deena Altman (owners of Altman Plants), who support numerous efforts to improve education and research for the industry.
They are highly appreciative of the horticulture field and established the Center for Applied Horticultural Research as an effort to help the industry.
These scholarships help to inspire and enable students to pursue their dreams of a career in horticulture with an annual scholarship of $5,000.
"Being awarded a scholarship by the American Floral Endowment is such an honor. It adds so much value to my career just being affiliated with AFE," Manjot Sidhu, one of the previous recipients, said. "I am so proud of that."
"This award allows me to experience milestones in research that I never had before," Savannah Mead, a previous Altman Family Scholar, said. "I could not be more grateful to AFE for seeing the potential in me and awarding the Altman Family scholarship to me so I can truly enrich my graduate research experience."
The Paul Ecke, Jr. Scholarship honors the late Paul Ecke, Jr., who made significant contributions to the floriculture industry and believed strongly in research and education.
He was concerned about the future of floriculture and recognized that innovative researchers and educators are necessary for the continued success of the industry.
One student will receive $5,000 for two consecutive years ($10,000 total), providing that they continue to meet requirements for this duration and submit an annual update.
"Receiving this scholarship is a complete honor...This scholarship will help me make more connections in the industry and open doors for me that might have previously been unavailable to me," noted a previous Paul Ecke, Jr. recipient, Jack Bobo.
Students can apply online by February 1, 2026. Applications can be made at the link here.
American Floral Endowment
Tel.: +1 (703) 838-5211
[email protected]
www.endowment.org
