Bethel-Tate High School graduate Christopher Nester, like many other kids his age, will be going to college in the fall. However, for this 2007 graduate, one major portion of the college experience will be greatly diminished: the debt.

Nester is one of a handful of students in the state to receive the Land Grant Opportunity Scholarship from The Ohio State University, a full-ride scholarship that will provide the young man with tuition, room and board for four years of college.

“One person from each county gets one, and it’s a full-ride scholarship,” said Nester. “It’s academic/financial needs based, and it increases with tuition, so tuition will always be covered.”

According to a press release from OSU, the scholarships are given out every year to high-ability students, typically high-ability students with little financial means for attending college on their own. At this point, the scholarship is worth nearly $20,000 a year, and will remain in place so long as Nester is a full-time student with a grade point average of 3.2 or higher.