Arkansas Rice awards scholarships to Rice Reps class

The Rice Reps class of 2021 capped off the five-month Arkansas Rice program on Sunday at Loca Luna in Little Rock. The Rice Reps and their families were present as students received scholarships while the class as a whole was recognized for their participation.

Kristin Lehmann of Scotland (Van Buren County) was the grand prize winner. Mary Frances Oxner of Searcy (White County) was awarded the second place prize. Emma Gardner of Fayetteville (Washington County) and Magon James of DeWitt (Arkansas County) tied as the third place winners.

The goal of the Arkansas Rice Reps program is to encourage interest in rice promotion and to publicize the importance of the Arkansas rice industry to the state’s economy. Contestants were judged on their promotional activities, creativity, involvement, stewardship while participating in the program, and on their knowledge of the rice industry.

The Arkansas Rice Council sponsors this program for high school seniors. Application information for the 2022 Rice Rep class will be available starting in March of the new year.

Other scholarships were given based on various social media, traditional media, and cookbook contests. A full list of scholarship winners can be found here:

Grand Prize Winner: Kristin Lehmann $5,000.00
2nd Place Winner: Mary Frances Oxner $3,000.00
3rd Place Winner (tie): Emma Gardner $1,000.00
3rd Place Winner (tie): Magon James $1,000.00
Facebook Contest: Samia Smith $1,000.00, Conner Simpson $500
Twitter Contest: Emma Gardner $1,000.00, Claudia Ponce $500
Rice Month Video Contest: Mary Frances Oxner $1,000.00, Emma Gardner $500
Instagram Contest: Reese Hargrove $500, Mary Frances Oxner $250
Cookbook Competition: Zackery Holloway $500.00, Hunter Hayes $250
Traditional Media Scholarship: Emma King $1,000.00, Alexis Adams $500