This scholarship was established in 2019 by Michael James and Wendy Menard James. Wendy is a native of Sault Ste. Marie and a member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. She is a LSSU alumna and in 2019 she received the Kenneth J. Shouldice Award that honors individuals whose personal and professional successes serve as outstanding examples to LSSU graduates. Wendy began her successful career in the Sault as a newspaper reporter, later working in government, nonprofit and business before starting her own successful company focusing on environmental improvement. Michael spent his career in the entertainment business, working mostly in music and television. She and her husband created this scholarship to support students who are under-represented in the LSSU population. They aim to help male and female students who want to encourage the advancement of women who currently are underrepresented in both business and environmental fields.
Successful candidates may be an incoming freshman or current student who is a graduate of a Michigan Eastern Upper Peninsula high school with a minimum 3.0 GPA. One student who is majoring in a LSSU Environmental Science program and one who is majoring in a Lukenda School of Business program are selected each year.