Anheuser-Busch Establishes Scholarship Fund for Harris-Stowe School of Business Students

$1 Million Grant Will Assist More Than 100 Business School Students Over Next Five Years

ST. LOUIS (Sept. 18, 2009) – The Anheuser-Busch Foundation is announcing today a $1 million gift to Harris-Stowe State University (HSSU) for the establishment of the Anheuser-Busch School of Business Scholarship. The new scholarship fund will give more than 100 worthy business students the opportunity to learn, grow and succeed within the business field, beginning the spring semester of 2010.

“We are grateful to Anheuser-Busch for their continuing support of our institution and this generous investment in our business school students,” said Dr. Henry Givens Jr., president of Harris-Stowe State University.  “Not only will Anheuser-Busch scholarship recipients benefit from the financial assistance, but participating may make them more marketable in their job search, as they will have the opportunity to learn directly from mentors in the St. Louis business community.”

Each student will be assigned a mentor from HSSU’s African-American Business Leadership Council. These successful business leaders will serve as a resource for the students as they complete their studies at HSSU and begin their transition into the business world.

To qualify, applicants must be juniors or seniors, full-time students with a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher and demonstrate a need for financial assistance. Interested students may inquire about eligibility by contacting Dr. Fara Zakery, Dean of the business school. Final plans for the scholarship program are now being developed.

“Supporting Harris-Stowe State University’s School of Business and soon-to-be Anheuser-Busch scholars is particularly important to us, because so many of them will work in St. Louis after their college graduation,” said Johnny Furr, vice president of community affairs for Anheuser-Busch. “We know that by investing in them now, they’ll reinvest in our community as college graduates.”

HSSU’s business school was named in honor of Anheuser-Busch in 2005. The company has a long history of supporting the university of which 90 percent of its graduates are from the St. Louis region. For many of these graduates, they are the first in their families to attend and graduate college. In addition, many of Harris-Stowe’s students have limited access to higher education because of their great financial need.

Media is encouraged to attend a press conference, at 10 a.m. Friday, Sept. 18, on the Harris-Stowe State University campus, in the Emerson Performance Center’s Bank of America Theatre.

Investing in education has been at the core of Anheuser-Busch’s giving philosophy, especially in its hometown. In addition to HSSU, earlier this year the company announced several donations to directly benefit several St. Louis-based institutions, including the University of Missouri-St. Louis, Saint Louis University, as well as organizations focused on supporting educational opportunities, such as College Bound and Teach for America.

About Harris-Stowe State University
Harris-Stowe State University, located in midtown St. Louis, is a four-year institution that offers 12 degree programs in the areas of early childhood education, elementary education, middle school/junior high education, secondary education, business administration, information sciences and computer technology, health care management, hospitality and tourism, accounting, criminal justice, professional interdisciplinary studies and urban education. Ranked by U.S. News as one of America’s Best Colleges in the Midwest, the university, which has been in existence for more than 150 years, offers the most affordable baccalaureate degree in the metropolitan area.

About Anheuser-Busch
For more than 100 years, Anheuser-Busch, a wholly owned subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev, and the Anheuser-Busch Foundation have reached out to groups in need, contributing to community organizations across the country and touching countless individual lives. During the past decade alone, the company and its foundation have donated more than $370 million to charitable organizations, including those that support education, the environment, economic development, disaster preparedness/relief and support of those who serve our country.  For more information, visit www.anheuser-busch.com.