Lockerbie-Syracuse scholarship scheme set to restart
A scholarship scheme - set up in the wake of the Lockerbie bombing - which sends Scottish school pupils to a US university is set to be revived. Two Lockerbie Academy students were selected to study at Syracuse University in New York state every year between 1989 and 2024 but no intake will happen in 2025/26.Thirty-five Syracuse students were among 270 victims of the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 in December 1988. The university has announced that the scholarship is now due to restart in autumn 2026 but it is unclear who will fund the programme.
Previously, the Lockerbie students selected to spend a year at the US university were chosen by the Lockerbie Syracuse Trust (LST). The scheme was funded by both the university and the trust - with a contribution also understood to come from Dumfries and Galloway Council.There will been no intake for 2025/26 but Syracuse University has now relaunched the scheme, describing it as a "reimagined partnership". Students will be chosen by a panel of representatives from the university and the academy using "elevated selection criteria based on rigorous academic standards". The university said it would select students who demonstrate "academic excellence and a deep understanding" of the Pan Am Flight 103 tragedy. A press statement makes no mention of the LST and does not state how the scheme will be funded.
Carolyne Wilson, who chairs the LST, said the funding situation had not been confirmed with them."Previously, Syracuse University have funded part of it, and the trust has picked up the other part which equates to about £40,000 a year," she said. She said the LST would be happy for that arrangement to continue but it had not been approached to do so."I think there would definitely need to be discussions between all parties because obviously we would love to strengthen and maintain our partnership with both Lockerbie Academy and Syracuse University to provide the best opportunities possible for the students of Lockerbie and the surrounding area," she added.
Anna Newbould, one of the Lockerbie Academy scholars for 2024/25, said it was important to keep the link."I think everyone would agree that it's incredibly important for this scholarship to continue, not just as an experience for the upcoming students but especially for the families of the victims who were sadly lost," she said."Without the scholarship, the connection with Lockerbie, I believe, would only fade over time and ultimately it could be forgotten which is not something anyone wants."Now more than ever, as the disaster is drifting further from the current generation, 36 years on, it's important to keep educating future generations and to keep the victims' memories alive."
'Reforge our bond'
Brian Asher, head teacher at Lockerbie Academy, welcomed the move to re-establish the scholarship. He said: "Syracuse University has, since the terrible events of 21 December 1988, held a special place in the heart of Lockerbie."We reforge our bond in honour of all those who were lost that night. "I am excited to work with our Syracuse University colleagues on behalf of the academy as we build on our shared past, towards a shared future."Syracuse University said the scheme would run until at least 2028.
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