Edwin E. and Janet L. Bryant Foundation, Inc. directs its education giving through a renewable scholarship program for former students of selected Wisconsin high schools, tying the foundation’s work to communities where Nelson Industries, Inc. operated manufacturing plants. The program includes Stoughton, Wisconsin, which served as the company’s corporate headquarters until its sale in 1998. Edwin E. Bryant, identified as a benefactor of the foundation, founded Nelson Industries, Inc. and served as its chairman and chief executive officer until his death in 1972. The foundation’s board connects its scholarship activity to the role those Wisconsin locations played in the company’s success.
The foundation’s scholarship support is structured for students who have already completed high school or earned a GED and are pursuing undergraduate education. Eligible applicants must be graduates of, or former attendees before obtaining a GED from, one of ten Wisconsin schools: Arcadia High School in Arcadia; Black River Falls High in Black River Falls; Bloomer High School in Bloomer; Mineral Point High in Mineral Point; Montello Junior/Senior High School in Montello; Neillsville High School in Neillsville; Riverdale Schools in Muscoda; Stoughton High School in Stoughton; Viroqua High School in Viroqua; and Wautoma High School in Wautoma. The program supports study at accredited two-year and four-year institutions, including community or technical colleges, universities, and vocational-technical schools, on either a part-time or full-time basis.