Dr. Chris Lowder Scholarships

05/08/2026

🤩 Congratulations to Hannah Burnette on receiving the Dr. Chris Lowder Scholarship for a graduating Cabarrus County Schools senior! Hannah is a senior at the Cabarrus-Kannapolis Early College High School. Hannah honored the late Mrs. Annie Tucker, her teacher from Rocky River Elementary School. Hannah plans to continue her studies in Civil Engineering at UNC Charlotte. Best wishes on your continued success! 🥳🎉

05/08/2026

🤩 Congratulations to Raina Meyer, math teacher at Concord High School Spiders NC 🕷️ on receiving the Dr. Chris Lowder Scholarship for Cabarrus County Schools staff who are continuing their education. Ms. Meyer is earning a Master's degree in School Administration at UNC Charlotte. She honored her high school teacher, Mrs. Natalie Tucker, now also a CHS Math Dept colleague, with her essay on a teacher who influenced her. Congratulations to Ms. Meyer and Mrs. Tucker!! 💐🎉

04/27/2026

We are sad to share that Joan Lowder, Dr. Lowder's mother, passed away on Friday evening. She loved the idea of these scholarships, and the family has asked that any donations in her memory go to the future of the graduating senior and educator scholarships. Donations can be made by check (as noted in the obituary) or by PayPal to [email protected]. We can also accept Venmo contributions by request. Please message or email us for Venmo information. May the family's memories be a blessing.

View Joan C. Lowder's obituary, send flowers, find service dates, and sign the guestbook.

04/03/2026

We're excited to review the graduating senior applications! Our first step is to review for completeness and timeliness. We will confirm via email to the student if additional information is needed or if the application has moved onto consideration for the scholarship. Expect to hear from us by April 8th!

03/30/2026

🌟 Graduating seniors! The scholarship application deadline is fast approaching! Please finish your application in the Google Form and submit your attachments via email no later than April 1st at 9 PM local time. Be sure any scanned information is readable. Use the checklist!

🤩The application for the two 2026 Dr. Chris Lowder Scholarships is now available! There is one $1000 scholarship for a Cabarrus County Schools senior who has been enrolled in CCS for the entire academic year. And one $1000 scholarship for a CCS staff member who has been employed by CCS since at least 8/1/2025 and is furthering their education. The staff member can be in any CCS role as long as they are pursuing education to further their CCS employment. https://tinyurl.com/2026Lowder

The key feature of these scholarships is to write an essay honoring a prior teacher who made an impression on the applicant. You might call it a "My Favorite Teacher" essay. :-)

Please ensure the applicant reads all information in its entirety to ensure all requirements are met. Unofficial transcripts and submitting partial application packets are not acceptable.

03/25/2026

Thanks to The Cabarrus Compass for sharing information on our two annual scholarships!

Program offers two $1,000 awards and centers on essays honoring educators who made a lasting impact.

03/18/2026

👉We're over halfway to the due date for the graduating senior applications. See more details at the top of the application at https://tinyurl.com/2026Lowder! Student applications are due by April 1st at 9:00 PM. Staff applications are due by April 6th at 9:00 PM.

Given in honor of Dr. Christopher Lowder’s dedication to the students and staff in Cabarrus County Schools (CCS), the scholarships are for $1000 each (non-renewable) and awarded annually. The key component of the scholarship application and award process, for both awards, is the applicant’s essa...

03/01/2026

🤩The application for the two 2026 Dr. Chris Lowder Scholarships is now available! There is one $1000 scholarship for a Cabarrus County Schools senior who has been enrolled in CCS for the entire academic year. And one $1000 scholarship for a CCS staff member who has been employed by CCS since at least 8/1/2025 and is furthering their education. The staff member can be in any CCS role as long as they are pursuing education to further their CCS employment. https://tinyurl.com/2026Lowder

The key feature of these scholarships is to write an essay honoring a prior teacher who made an impression on the applicant. You might call it a "My Favorite Teacher" essay. :-)

Please ensure the applicant reads all information in its entirety to ensure all requirements are met. Unofficial transcripts and submitting partial application packets are not acceptable.

02/10/2026

🏆It's almost scholarship application time again! We will be posting the 6th annual Dr. Chris Lowder Scholarship application by March 1st, with applications due by March 31st.

🏆There will be one $1000 award for a Cabarrus County Schools graduating senior and one $1000 award for a CCS staff member (in any role) who is continuing their education.

Additional requirements/qualifications will be included in the application when available.

Like our page and share this opportunity with students and staff who may qualify to apply for these scholarships! The 2025 scholarship winners are pictured below.

05/12/2025

🎉 🎉🎉Congratulations to Zach Harpine, staff member at Central Cabarrus High School, on receiving the 2025 Dr. Chris Lowder Staff Scholarship of $1000! Zach is a lateral entry teacher working on a Graduate Certificate in Teaching at UNC Charlotte, supporting his work as secondary English teacher.

Zach's essay was on Mrs. Christina Hartzell, a Cabarrus County Schools colleague who mentored him as he pursued his new career of teaching at the high school level.