Mt. Pleasant Area Community Foundation

For good. For ever.

306 South University Avenue Mount Pleasant, MI, 48858 United States

(989) 773-7322

Our mission is to enhance the quality of life for all citizens of Isabella County, now and for generations to come, by attracting and holding permanent endowed funds from a wide range of donors, addressing needs through grant making and providing leadership on key community issues.

Denison Family Scholarship Fund

Married on August 30, 1941, Rollie and Olga Denison were children of the Depression and appreciated the opportunities that Mt. Pleasant gave them. They felt it was important to support the community that had given them so much.

Rollie was president of Denison and Associates, an oil property holding company.  He and his business partner owned Lease Management for much of his life. Rollie helped to organize the Mt. Pleasant Area Industrial Development Corporation and founded the Mt. Pleasant Area Community Foundation.  He served on numerous city, school and business boards and commissions, and was mayor of Mt. Pleasant for two years. Rollie was recognized as the Mt. Pleasant Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year in 1971.

Olga was also very active in the Mt. Pleasant community for many years. She was one of the original organizers of the Central Michigan Child Guidance Clinic, and was closely involved in organizing the First United Methodist Church’s Mackenzie Circle, the Mt. Pleasant Chapter of People to People, the Mae Beck Indian Affairs Committee of the Mt. Pleasant Women’s Club, and Art Reach of Mid-Michigan. She was a long-time member of the Mt. Pleasant Chapter of the PEO (Women’s Philanthropic and Educational Organization). Olga was recognized as the Mt. Pleasant Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year in 1988.

Olga established the Denison Family Scholarship Fund in 2003 to award scholarships to graduating seniors from Mt. Pleasant High School in recognition of the excellent education provided to graduates Olga Jones Denison (1935), Spencer Thomas Denison (1962), Diane Christina Denison (1965) and Daniel Roland Denison (1969).

Scholarship Eligibility Criteria:

  • Applicant will be a graduating senior from Mt. Pleasant High School.

  • Demonstrate academic ability with a minimum 3.25 GPA.

  • Demonstrate positive attitude toward school and community.

  • Financial need shall be a factor in the selection process. (Please devote one paragraph of your essay to stating your case for financial need.)