The Sandy Cochran Memorial Scholarship selection committee announced four regional students will share in the award of $2,000 in scholarships for the 2025-26 academic year.

The committee received a number of exceptional applications from students across the region with aspirations to pursue a career related to the stewardship of forests and natural resources, members said.

Jarren Cotter, a graduate of Jamestown (N.Y.) High School, will receive a $1,000 scholarship. Christopher Lukasiak, a graduate of Chautauqua Lake (N.Y.) Central School will receive a $500 scholarship. Maisy Post, a graduate of North East High School, will receive a $250 scholarship. Trent Ivett, a Pine Valley Central School graduate, will receive a $250 scholarship.

The Pennsylvania/New York forestry community created the Sandy Cochran Memorial Fund to honor Roe S. “Sandy” Cochran, who served as a forest resources extension specialist for Penn State University for 25 years. Cochran was instrumental in founding the Allegheny Hardwood Silviculture Training Sessions, Kane Area Logging Safety Council, the Allegheny Hardwood Utilization Group (AHUG), the Ben Roach Forestry Forum, and the Deer Forest Regeneration Subcommittee of the Society of American Foresters.

One mission of the Sandy Cochran Memorial Fund is to support students from the 17-county region of northwestern Pennsylvania and southwestern New York who are committed to pursuing careers in forestry, natural resources management or environmental science.

The Sandy Cochran Memorial Fund Committee operates under the umbrella of the Roach-Bauer Forestry Forum Committee, which comprises forestry, environmental science and resource management professionals from across the Northern Allegheny Region. The fund is administered by the ESF College Foundation Inc., affiliated with the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY CESF).

This year’s scholarship awards were supplemented by a contribution from the Allegheny Hardwood Utilization Group (AHUG), non-profit hardwood industry organization dedicated to promoting, expanding and diversifying the forest products industry through sustainable, science-based forest resource management practices. AHUG serves the 14-county region of northwest and northcentral PA.

For more information, visit sandycochran.org