Scholarships and Awards
The deadline for scholarship applications is April 1st.
Gannaway Memorial Aviation Scholarship
ELIGIBILITY - Updated March, 2008
A student must meet the following criteria:
- Full-time student at Middle Georgia College
- Current enrollment in any degree or certificate program in Flight Technology at the Georgia Aviation Campus
- Current enrollment in a class or classes leading to Instrument Pilot Rating, Commercial Pilot Rating, Certified Flight Instructor Rating, or Multi-Engine Pilot Rating
- Maintain satisfactory academic progress as set forth in the student handbook and maintain a minimum overall Grade Point Average (GPA) of 3.0 at Middle Georgia College
- Demonstrate a strong work ethic and sense of professional responsibility as indicated by your overall work ethic assessment
APPLICATION PROCEDURES
A student must submit the following by the published deadline to be considered:
- A completed application for the Gannaway Memorial Aviation Scholarship
- A personal resume (typed)
- An unofficial transcript from Warrior Web
Gannaway Memorial Aviation Scholarship Application
History
Edwin Craig Gannaway was born February 2, 1950, in Draper, Virginia, to Lawrence Craig and Patricia Gannaway. He later moved to Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where he graduated from R.J. Reynolds High School. In high school, he was a member of the varsity football and baseball teams, as well as the Senior Service Club. He graduated from Presbyterian College in Clinton, South Carolina, with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree. He was a member of Sigma Nu Fraternity.
While working in a management position in Atlanta, Georgia, he met and married his wife, Jackie. A few years later, they relocated to Dublin, Georgia, his wife's home. Ed worked as a general manager for a local company and devoted most of his extra time to helping raise his three sons, Craig, Russell, and Rob. In 1985, he began taking flying lessons, fulfilling a life-long dream. A short time later he became an instructor pilot and began building the hours needed to apply for a commercial aviation position. He began working as a First Officer for Atlantic Southeast Airlines (ASA) in March, 1988. He later made Captain with ASA, flying the Embraer Brasilia. His life ended on August 21, 1995, when the Brasilia he was piloting developed an engine problem which rendered the aircraft almost uncontrollable and forced him to make a crash landing in a field outside Carrollton, Georgia. Although he and nine passengers perished in the crash, twenty others survived. In recognition of his heroic attempt to save his aircraft and all onboard, he was posthumously awarded the prestigious Lt. Harold George Civilian Airmanship Award for 1995 by the National Order of Daedalians. This award recognized his exceptional piloting skill displayed in catastrophic flight conditions.
Mr. Gannaway was active in the Dublin community as a member of the First United Methodist Church, the Rotary Club, Boy Scouts of America, Dublin Country Club, Emerald City Running Club, Laurens County Bicycle Club, Dublin Touchdown Club, Order of the Shillelagh, and Laurens County Historical Society. He was an avid runner and competed in many races, including the Boston and New York Marathons.
This scholarship was created in 1996 by Mr. Gannaway's wife in his memory, to benefit flight students at the Eastman Center campus of Heart of Georgia Technical Institute (later College). When the Eastman Center campus subsequently separated from Heart of Georgia Technical College and became the stand-alone Georgia Aviation Technical College on July 1, 2001, this scholarship transferred to the new school. It is administered by the Georgia Aviation and Technical College Foundation, Inc.