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Snapping Up A KFC Scholarship: One Tweeted Photo Earns San Diego High Schooler $20k For College

By: KFC |  4 Shares     163 Reads

Sixth Annual KFC Colonel's Scholars® Program Gains Momentum by Awarding First of 75 Scholarships

December 21, 2011 // Franchising.com // LOUISVILLE, KY – Today, a photo is worth more than a thousand words – it's worth a college education. Kentucky Fried Chicken has announced that Daniel Galuppo from Torrey Pines High School in San Diego, Calif. won a $20,000 KFC Colonel's Scholars® scholarship based on a single photo shared on Twitter.

KFC selected Daniel Galuppo from high school seniors across the country who applied by tweeting a single image and including the hashtag #KFCScholar. He schooled the Twitterverse with an image from a recent volunteer trip to Vietnam, where he photographed orphans. Galuppo, originally from Lithuania, has no photos of himself before his adoption and move to the United States. He has made it his mission to visit orphanages so he can give the children pictures of themselves as keepsakes.

Photo entries were judged on quality, creativity, compelling nature and consistency with Colonel Harland Sanders' commitment to service.

"We were impressed by the creativity and passion for higher education that came across in these images. It was tough to pick a winner," said John Cywinski, President of KFC. "Daniel's photo highlighting why he embodies the qualities of a Colonel's Scholar put him at the head of the class. We're proud to help further his college education."

Galuppo will receive up to $5,000 per year for the next four years to pursue a bachelor's degree at an accredited public university within California. He hopes to attend UCLA in 2012 to pursue film production.

"Being behind the camera is my passion, and now a photo has earned me the chance at a college education," says Galuppo. "I can't tell you how I excited I am to pursue my dreams as a Colonel's Scholar on campus this fall."

Last year's winner, Amanda Russell, won KFC's inaugural Twitter scholarship with a single 140-character tweet: "#KFCScholar Hey Colonel! Your scholarship's the secret ingredient missing from my recipe for success! Got the grades, drive, just need cash!" Russell also attends UCLA and continues to play an active role in the Colonel's Scholars program, even providing tips to this year's entrants via the @KFC_Colonel handle.

74 More Scholarships up for Grabs: Apply Now

Shutterbugs aren't the only ones who can snap up a scholarship. Applications for 2012 are being accepted through Feb. 8. Seventy-four additional scholarships will be awarded for next year. Visit www.KFC.com or www.KFCscholars.org for more information.

KFC Colonel's Scholars, now in its sixth year, is an annual program of the Kentucky Fried Chicken Foundation, an independent charity supported by KFC, its employees and franchisees, and KFC patrons.

The KFC Colonel's Scholars' mission is to empower students to improve their lives with scholarship resources. The program has awarded more than $5 million in scholarships since its inception.

For more information on KFC Colonel's Scholars and the Kentucky Fried Chicken Foundation, visit www.KFC.com or www.KFCscholars.org.

*Eligibility
To be eligible to compete for the KFC Colonel's Scholars Scholarship, an individual must:

• Graduate from high school this academic year (8/31/12)
• Earn a minimum cumulative high school GPA of 2.75
• Plan to pursue a bachelor's degree at a public, in-state college or university (start no later than 9/30/12)
• Be a US citizen or permanent resident

About KFC Colonel's Scholars

KFC Colonel's Scholars is a program of Kentucky Fried Chicken Foundation, an independent 501c3 charity funded by KFC, its employees, franchisees and KFC patrons, and seeks to help provide high school students scholarship resources to attend public post-secondary schools within their states of residence. Colonel's Scholars is a registered trademark of KFC Corporation.

About KFC

KFC Corporation, based in Louisville, Ky., is the world's most popular chicken restaurant chain specializing in Original Recipe®, Extra Crispy™, Kentucky Grilled Chicken® and Crispy Strips with home-style sides, Hot Wings, and freshly made chicken sandwiches including the Double Down® and the Doublicious®. There are more than 15,000 KFC outlets in 109 countries and territories around the world serving some 12 million customers each day. KFC Corporation is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc., Louisville, Ky. (NYSE: YUM.) For more information, visit www.kfc.com. Follow KFC on Facebook (www.facebook.com/KFC) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/kfc_colonel).

About Colonel Sanders

The Kentucky Fried Chicken concept was pioneered by Colonel Harland Sanders (1890-1980), whose cooking career began at age six. Sanders held jobs ranging from streetcar conductor to insurance salesman, but his cooking skills were a constant throughout his life. In 1930, Sanders operated a service station in Corbin, Ky., and filled the stomachs of hungry travelers who stopped in to fill up their gas tanks. Sanders soon moved his restaurant across the street when he could no longer keep up with the demand from travelers who he had been feeding at his kitchen table. In 1935, the Kentucky Governor made Sanders an honorary Kentucky Colonel for his contributions to the state's cuisine. Over the next decade, the Colonel perfected his secret blend of 11 herbs and spices and the basic cooking technique still used at KFC today. When Sanders was 65, a new interstate highway forced the closure of his restaurant and he was left with only his recipe for fried chicken and a $105 Social Security check. The Colonel hit the road and struck handshake deals with restaurant owners who agreed to sell his fried chicken. What began as a dream fueled by the Original Recipe, a no-quit attitude and a Social Security check grew into the world's largest chicken restaurant chain. Until he passed away in 1980 at the age of 90, the Colonel still traveled 250,000 miles a year visiting KFC restaurants around the world.

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