Jacobs awarded Ford scholarship

Published 1:26 pm Sunday, June 12, 2005

PENDLETON – Ken Jacobs, general manager of Denny’s restaurant, has been awarded the Ford Family Foundation Restart Scholarship.

Jacobs, 35, a Denny’s employee for 18 years, is enrolled in the elementary education program offered by Eastern Oregon University. He’s co-enrolled at Blue Mountain Community College and is able to take all of his classes in Pendleton, he said.

Among 200 applicants statewide, Jacobs was one of 50 chosen to be interviewed. He hopes to teach primary grades after he graduates in 2007.

The scholarship pays for 90 percent of unmet needs. The foundation was established by Kenneth and Hallie Ford, founders of the Roseburg Forest Products Company.

Jacobs works full-time at Denny’s, takes college classes, helps coach his son’s Little League team, helps with a Cub Scout troop and volunteers one day a week in his son’s first-grade class.