GRAND ISLAND, Neb. — Haley Mouser, Tenstrike, Minn., received the National Junior Merit $5,000 Scholarship at the 2024 Vitaferm^®Junior National Hereford Expo (JNHE) Hereford Youth Foundation of America (HYFA) Scholarship, Award and Maroon Jacket Ceremony on July 11 in Grand Island, Neb.

Haley Mouser is a junior at South Dakota State University where she is double majoring in animal science and agricultural science. Mouser plans to pursue her master’s and doctorate degree, with hopes to work within the agricultural industry and tell consumers about the science within the beef industry. 

Mouser is no stranger to the Hereford breed; she has been a member of the National Junior Hereford Association (NJHA) for eight years. She has attended several conferences, including the 2022 BOLD Conference, and she has served as Minnesota Junior Hereford board president and as a member of theNJHA board of directors. 

“Because of all that has been poured into me over the past few years, I am now ready and excited to give back by encouraging, being invested and dedicating my time to our juniors,” Mouser said. The National Junior Merit Scholarship is one of the most prestigious awards given at the JNHE. It was developed to encourage individual and cooperative effort, enthusiasm, leadership and achievement and to develop well-rounded breeders for the Hereford breed and beef industry. Each year, the winner receives a subsidized trip to a Hereford operation of their choice in the continental U.S., along with a $5,000 scholarship. 

George Sprague, HYFA scholarship selection committee member, helped evaluate the applications this spring. He speaks very highly of the applicants, saying, “They were indeed an impressive group: thoughtful, accomplished, articulate and ambitious. It’s amazing that each year the applicants seem better than the previous year’s applicants.”

HYFA awarded $40,000 to outstanding Hereford youth at the 2024 JNHE and will award more than $200,000 throughout the year to deserving junior members to aid in their academic endeavors. 

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The Hereford Youth Foundation of America (HYFA) was established in 1986 and is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) corporation dedicated exclusively to scholarship and educational support of youth in the business of raising Hereford cattle. The mission of the Hereford Youth Foundation of America is to encourage, recognize and reward the development of life skills and values in the next generation of leaders by providing education, scholarship and leadership opportunities for Hereford Youth.