Jim DeBord Scholarships and Honorary Diploma Awarded

Cutline: The Jim DeBord Scholarship was recently presented to Zach Johnson (left) of Grand Island and Cameron Collins (right) of Lincoln at a ceremony at Central Community College Hastings. Jim DeBord (center), for whom the scholarship is named, posed with the recipients, who each received $1,000 to defray college expenses. (Photo courtesy Central Community College)

HASTINGS, Neb. – The annual presentation of a scholarship at Central Community College-Hastings was made on Feb. 26 along with the awarding of a CCC honorary diploma.

Jim DeBord, for whom the Jim DeBord Scholarship is named, received the honorary diploma for his sustained commitment and advocacy in the heavy equipment field where he worked for 33 years. Some of the Nebraska construction projects DeBord helped with throughout his career include the Farwell Canal project from Sherman Dam to St. Paul, Highway 18 south of Curtis, Highway 25 south of Trenton and Highway 12 from Valentine to Sparks.

The DeBord Scholarship was established in 2020 by Ron Debord, Jim’s son, and his wife, Tammy. Each year, $1,000 scholarships are presented to two students in the heavy equipment operator technician (HEOT) program at the Hastings Campus. This year, Cameron Collins of Lincoln and Zach Johnson of Grand Island were named as the recipients.

“I’m very appreciative and grateful for the opportunity (the DeBord’s) give to this program,” said Collins, a graduate of North Star High School in Lincoln. “There’s a lot of people that support this program and building the future of the industry and I’m just really grateful for that.”

“I’m very grateful for receiving this scholarship,” said Johnson, who graduated from Northwest High School in Grand Island. “I can focus a lot less on the financial side of college.

Collins has an interest in operating cranes while Johnson is exploring excavators and wheel loaders.