By Emma Godwin, Golden LEAF External Affairs Intern
Golden LEAF Scholar alumnus Chandler Bumgarner grew up in Taylorsville, N.C., in rural Alexander County, holding a sense of community close to his heart.
This sense of community was significant as he began his college career at Western Carolina University. Chandler Bumgarner’s closest friends from back home attended his college with him, signifying what it meant to him to have a community and family of friends to lean on.
“In a very small town, everyone knows each other and grows up with the same people,” said Bumgarner. “I’m still friends with a lot of the same people I went to high school with. Many of us went to college together as well. My friends are truly my family. I really enjoyed growing up in a rural area with close relationships like that.”
Bumgarner learned about the Golden LEAF Scholarship from his high school counselor, who informed him of the opportunity.
“Our high school counselors were really great about making sure students who wanted to go to college from Alexander Central were put in touch with college recruiters and scholarship opportunities, making sure that you got the best information you could get,” said Bumgarner.
Bumgarner said the scholarship not only provides funding to attend college, but also provides other important opportunities.
“The best thing I ever did was apply for the Golden LEAF Scholarship,” said Bumgarner. “Golden LEAF Scholars have the Rural Internship Initiative available to them; all the luncheons where you get to network with not only your fellow scholarship recipients, but also your school’s administration; and you get to meet Golden LEAF leadership. It is a valuable experience across the board.”
In fact, Bumgarner used the resources he had when he first became a Golden LEAF Scholar in 2020. As a freshman in college, he found out about the Golden LEAF Scholars Leadership Program, the predecessor program to the Golden LEAF Rural Internship Initiative. By early 2021, he needed to find an internship, so he began emailing various organizations, including CPA firms, businesses, and governmental entities. Most places were hesitant to allow interns because of the pandemic.
He decided to reach out to Margaret Pierce, Finance Director at Burke County, and asked if they were taking interns. She welcomed the opportunity, and Bumgarner began in his position as the accounting intern with Burke County in May 2021.
“My summer internship went by quickly, and I loved it so much,” said Bumgarner. “I kept coming back every summer to serve as an intern, and they even called me back one winter to work during winter break.”
Bumgarner said that following his last internship, Pierce expressed hope that a full-time position would become available for him.
“Before graduation, two positions opened up at Burke County,” said Bumgarner. “They had split a position into two to take some load off the person in the original position, and I immediately interviewed. After the final interview, they gave me the choice of the two positions.”
Bumgarner said he owes his job to the Golden LEAF internship opportunities.
“If it wasn’t for the Golden LEAF Scholarship Program, then I probably wouldn’t be here,” said Bumgarner. “I wouldn’t have thought about working for the government, because in school, they teach students more about a CPA career. It’s a good atmosphere in the finance department at Burke County.”
To him, being a Golden LEAF Scholarship recipient means not having to worry about the next steps in paying for college. Especially during difficult times, it eases the stress of knowing he was financially covered and did not have the stress of being unable to afford college.
“I am truly thankful and blessed to be a Golden LEAF Scholarship recipient,” said Bumgarner. “It is one of the best things that has ever happened in my life. I had this guarantee of four years of funding just sitting here waiting for me, as long as I had good grades.”
Bumgarner describes rural areas in three words: resilient, hard-working, and community.
“I feel like rural communities have helped shape me into who I am,” said Bumgarner. “I just want to give back to counties like mine. I really enjoy being somewhere where you feel more at home.”
For Bumgarner, being a part of rural North Carolina is “like I’m a part of a family.”
Click here to learn more about the Golden LEAF Colleges and Universities Scholarship.