A Peterson native and current Lakeside resident is one of two inaugural grant award winners for the Homegrown Talent Initiative.
The new program by the Iowa Lakes Corridor Development Corporation is designed to encourage former students of the region’s schools to come back and fill high-quality jobs available in the Corridor’s four-county region. Grant recipients receive six thousand dollars paid over four years to be used toward student loan repayment, mortgage payments, or childcare reimbursement.
One of the winners is Taylor Krager, who graduated from Sioux Central High School in 2021, and graduated from Buena Vista University last May. She is a Customer Experience Specialist at Farm Credit Services of America in Storm Lake.
“Thank you to the Iowa Lakes Corridor for this generous grant. I am truly grateful for the support!” Krager said. “I’m excited to stay in the region and begin building my life and career close to home, surrounded by people and places that mean the most to me. I am very thankful for this opportunity and to be in such a wonderful community!”
The Corridor accepted applications through the winter. 22 applications were received. The top six applicants scored by the Homegrown Talent Committee were invited to in-person interviews with the committee.
Funding for the awards was raised through the first annual Homegrown Talent Initiative Golf Tournament last August in Spencer. The second annual tournament will be held on August 1st at Emerald Hills Golf Course to support awards going forward.
