The “Ding” Darling Wildlife Society-Friends of the Refuge (DDWS) is taking applications for environmental studies scholarships, which will be distributed at the end of the 2025-26 school year.
Ranging from $1,000 to $5,000 each, the scholarships are available to high school seniors, college students and graduate students in or from Lee, Collier, Charlotte, Hendry and Glades counties pursuing degrees in environmental-related studies.
The DDWS will award the scholarships at a special ceremony in May at the J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel.
Now in its 21st year, the scholarship program presented its first awards in 2006, donated by Tarpon Bay Explorers — the refuge’s official recreation concession. To date, the DDWS Environmental Scholarship Program has awarded a total of $327,800.
The deadline for the applications is Feb. 28.
To apply or for more information, visit https://dingdarlingsociety.org/student-scholarships.
For more information about the program, including establishing a named scholarship, contact
DDWS Executive Director Ann-Marie Wildman at wildman@dingdarlingsociety.org.