Eskridge Auto Group’s “Free Ride” and Prosperity Bank’s Scholarship Program

Terms and Conditions

 

1. THE PROGRAM:

Eskridge Auto Group and Prosperity Bank (together, “Program Sponsors”) are awarding a “Free Ride” college scholarship worth up to $25,000 and a new 2024 Honda HRV LX to one graduating senior at a central Oklahoma Area High School!  The Program Sponsors together with KOCO 5 are also teaming up to award scholarships worth up to $5,000 to four graduating seniors.  The terms and conditions of participation in this program (the “Program”) are explained below.

2. ELIGIBILITY: 

The Program is offered only to legal U.S. citizens 18 years old or older by August 31, 2024, with parents or legal guardians that are U.S. citizens.   Candidates must be a licensed driver with a current, valid driver’s license with proof of insurance. Candidates must be legal U.S. residents attending high school in one of the following Oklahoma counties: Alfalfa, Beckham, Blaine, Caddo, Canadian, Cleveland, Custer, Dewey, Ellis, Garfield, Garvin, Grady, Grant, Greer, Harmon, Harper, Hughes, Kay, Kingfisher, Kiowa, Lincoln, Logan, Major, McClain, Murray, Noble, Okfuskee, Oklahoma, Payne, Pottawatomie, Roger Mills, Seminole, Washita, Woods, Woodward.  Candidates must have applied or have plans to apply for admission to a four-year post-secondary institution in the State of Oklahoma and must be on track and eligible to graduate from high school at the end of the 2023-2024 academic year and matriculate at a four-year post-secondary institution for the 2024-2025 academic year.  Candidates must have never been convicted of a misdemeanor or felony and must have never had a restraining order or other injunctive relief entered against them. Candidates must not have any criminal warrants outstanding for them. Candidates must have maintained an average 3.25 GPA during high school and be in good standing with the school.  Employees of KOCO 5 and members of their immediate families, Hearst Television Inc., Program Sponsors, Eskridge Auto Group, Prosperity Bank, Hearst Corporation, Woobox and each of their affiliates, representatives, and agents, and their directors and employees, and the members of the same households of such individuals are not eligible.  The term “immediate families” includes spouses, grandparents, parents, siblings, children, and grandchildren.  Candidates may be disqualified from further consideration for failure to provide complete and accurate information at any time. 

3. NOMINATION OF CANDIDATES:

Nominations may be submitted only between 12:01 a.m. on September 1, 2023, and 11:59 p.m. on January 15, 2024.  Nominations may be made by anybody, including by the nominee (i.e., a student may nominate him/herself).  All times in these Terms and Conditions refer to Central Time.

To make a nomination, visit www.koco.com, and complete and submit an electronic nomination form.  Limit one nomination per email address.  Nominators wishing to nominate multiple nominees will have to use different email addresses.  The nomination must include an essay describing why the nominee is deserving of the scholarship.  Program Sponsors request that essays be 1,000 words or fewer.  Essays may not contain indecent, obscene, profane, or offensive language (“Objectionable Language”) as judged in the sole discretion of Program Sponsors. 

Nominations may also be submitted by mail or hand-delivery to Eskridge/Prosperity Free Ride Scholarship Program c/o KOCO 5 at 1300 East Britton Road, Oklahoma City, OK 73131. Hand-delivery must occur during regular business hours, Monday-Friday 8:30am-5:00 pm, except holidays. Entries submitted by mail or hand delivery must contain: the essay described above, nominee’s name, email, phone, address, city, state, zip code, county, high school, and the nominator’s relationship to the nominee.  Please do not submit nominations directly to Eskridge Auto Group or Prosperity Bank.

Nominations may be rejected and not considered if they contain Objectionable Language, contain essays that are more than 1,000 words, fail to include an essay, contain an essay that is not on topic, or that are objectionable or unacceptable for any other reason. 

Program Sponsors reserve the right to edit or redact portions of essays in their sole discretion.  Only nominations that are received during the Entry Period will be considered.  Program Sponsors may not verify receipt of nominations. Nominations will not be returned. Program Sponsors are not responsible for nominations that are lost, late, misdirected, incomplete, incomprehensible, illegible, damaged, undeliverable, or delayed. 

4. SELECTION PROCESS:

The Scholarship Committee, comprised of judges representing the Program Sponsors, will review all nominations and select by February 5, 2024, up to ten (10) Semi-Finalists and up to ten (10) Alternates based on the eligibility of the nominees and the judges’ evaluation of the characterizations in the essays of the nominees who may be most deserving of the scholarship and free ride.  Each Semi-Finalist and Alternate will be notified by phone, email, and/or mail. Notified nominees must respond to such notification within seven (7) days or else be subject to disqualification, and a verification process will be conducted to ensure each Semi-Finalist and Alternate meets the Program requirements. Semi-Finalists and Alternates who fail to meet the verification requirements may be disqualified from further consideration. 

Semi-Finalists and Alternates must provide a letter of acceptance from the four-year college or university of their choice, must complete the Finalist Application Form, must submit a personalized video, and must provide all qualifying materials and information meeting the scholarship requirements by Friday, February 23, 2024.  It is recommended that the personalized video should not exceed 1 minute in length.  The video should feature the nominee presenting his or her “story” as to why s/he should receive the scholarship and free ride.  Videos must be submitted in a digital format and submitted via email directly or linked through a file sharing program (e.g., Dropbox, Google Drive, etc.).  Instructions about how, where, and to whom to submit the videos will be provided to Semi-Finalists and Alternates when they respond to the initial notification. 

All materials will be reviewed by Program Sponsors between February 5 and March 5, 2024.  The videos of up to ten Semi-Finalists (and any Alternates who have become Semi-Finalists by virtue of non-participation or disqualification by any Semi-Finalists) will be posted, in whole or in part in the discretion of Program Sponsors and KOCO 5, between March 11 and April 5, 2024, on the koco.com High School Play Book webpage, where website users will have an opportunity to “vote” for their favorite video or nominee (see voting rules at the High School Play Book webpage). Please note: “votes” do not affect the ultimate decisions made by Program Sponsors and do not have any weight in the selection of any scholarship or free ride recipient.   

The nominees whose videos were posted to the High School Play Book webpage will be individually interviewed by the Scholarship Committee at an Eskridge Auto location on a designated day and at a designated time between March 4 and April 5, 2024. After the interviews are conducted, the Scholarship Committee will narrow down the pool of candidates to five (5) Finalists by week of April 3,2024.  The Scholarship Committee will evaluate the Finalists and, by April 21, 2024, make its final selection based on its evaluation of which candidate most deserves to be selected as the Free Ride Vehicle/Scholarship recipient. 

Only one (1) candidate will be the Free Ride Vehicle/Scholarship recipient and the remaining four (4) Finalists will be Merit Scholarship recipients.  The Scholarship Committee will announce the recipient(s) during the Eskridge Free Ride and Prosperity Bank’s Scholarship Banquet by May 10, 2024.  The five (5) Finalists (and their immediate families) will be invited to the Banquet, and the Program Sponsors expect them to attend. 

5. PUBLICITY RELEASE:

Nominees may be featured, at KOCO 5’s sole discretion, in news stories or other program features or segments broadcast on television or posted and distributed on the Internet. Except where prohibited, participation by nominees in the interviews constitutes each nominee’s consent to use, publish, reproduce and for all purposes, including publicity, promotion and advertising, in any media (including without limitation, the Internet, television, radio, or offline promotions), each nominee’s name, city, photograph, likeness, biographical material, voice, image, each in perpetuity without further compensation, credit or right of review or approval. 

6. “FREE RIDE” AND SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS AND CONTINUING ELIGIBILITY: 

One (1) Free Ride Vehicle/Scholarship recipient will receive: one (1) New 2024 Honda HRV LX (valued at $25,425) and one (1) scholarship worth up to $25,000 over a four-year (4-year) period (conditions permitting, see below).  The Free Ride Vehicle/Scholarship recipient must have a valid driver’s license and proof of insurance and is responsible for taxes, tags, and other standard fees.

Four (4) Merit Scholarship recipients will each receive: one (1) one-time scholarship worth up to $5,000 (conditions permitting, see below).

The Free Ride Vehicle/Scholarship recipient’s scholarship award (worth up to $25,000) from Prosperity Bank will be paid directly to the four-year post-secondary institution in the State of Oklahoma where the recipient enrolls and attends. The scholarship may be worth less than $25,000 if the recipient’s qualifying expenses are less than that amount or if other scholarship or grant awards cover part or all the recipient’s qualifying expenses.  A maximum of $3,125 will be contributed each fall and spring school semester for up to four years, so long as the recipient enrolls in and completes a minimum of 12 credit hours per semester, remains in good academic standing as defined by the academic institution, and maintains a minimum 2.5 grade point average.  The 2024 Honda HRV LX must be picked up by the recipient at Eskridge Honda no later than5 p.m. on August 21, 2024.  Vehicle cannot be redeemed for cash.  No substitution permitted.  The recipient must enroll to the four-year post-secondary institution in the State of Oklahoma in the fall of 2024 to be eligible and must complete all eight (8) semesters within four (4) years to be eligible for entire scholarship. 

The Merit Scholarship recipients will receive up to $5,000 ($2,500 from Eskridge Auto Group, $1,500 from KOCO 5 and $1,000 from Prosperity Bank), to be paid directly to the recipient’s bursar account in only the first semester, at the four-year post-secondary institution in the State of Oklahoma where the recipient enrolls and attends, so long as the recipient enrolls in a minimum of 12 credit hours the semester immediately following the award of the scholarship, in the fall of 2024.  Merit Scholarships may be worth less than $5,000 if the recipient’s qualifying expenses for the first semester are less than that amount or if other scholarship or grant awards cover part or all the recipient’s qualifying expenses.

7. TAXES: 

Scholarship awards and the vehicle award may have tax ramifications.  Fair Market Value of the vehicle, when awarded, will be approximately $25,425.  Each recipient should consult with his or her tax advisor to determine tax liability, if any, associated with any of the awards.  Each recipient’s NCAA eligibility, if any, may (or may not) be affected by receipt of his or her respective award.  Recipients should consult with their university, college, or legal counsel to ascertain NCAA eligibility ramifications.