Edward Fennel Mauldin Endowed Scholarship #5

This endowed scholarship was established by Bank Independent to honor the late Edward Fennel Mauldin. Mr. Mauldin spent his early childhood on the family farm and peach orchard near Hapersville, Ala. He moved to Leighton in 1938 after the death of his mother to make his home with Mr. and Mrs. Edward Delony Fennel. Mr. Fennel was his namesake, guardian and his father’s lifelong friend. He graduated from Colbert County High School in 1944. At the age of 17, Mr. Mauldin volunteered for the U.S. Navy and was accepted into the Officer Aviator Training Program. He attended Newberry College in South Carolina and the University of South Carolina as a part of this program. He was a member of the Sigma Nu Fraternity. He later attended Auburn University, but returned home to farm in Colbert and Lawrence counties in Alabama after the death of Mr. Fennel.
Mr. Mauldin was a partner in Preuit and Mauldin Farms, Gin and the International Harvester Dealership in Town Creek, Ala. Since 1954, while continuing to farm, Mr. Mauldin has served as the Chairman and CEO of Bank of Leighton, First Colbert Bank and First Colbert National Bank. In 1975 he organized The Bank of Florence and in 1982 merged it with First Colbert National Bank to become Bank Independent, where he served as Chairman until his death.
The recipients of this scholarship must meet the following qualifications: the recipient must be a graduate of the University of North Alabama with a minimum cumulative undergraduate GPA of 2.0 entering into a Master’s degree program at the University of North Alabama; the recipient must be a first generation college student, resident and graduate of a high school of Colbert, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Franklin, or Morgan Counties in the state of Alabama. This scholarship may be renewed for up to two years of a recipient’s graduate education provided the recipient meets or maintains the above mentioned criteria as long as the student maintains a minimum 2.5 GPA.