When the recession hit, Steven Tice and his family thought they would not be heavily affected. But after a few months, businesses, including the one Tice’s dad worked for, began to feel the ripple effects. Tice’s dad lost his job, and within a month, his mom had been told her hours at work were being cut.

During that month, Tice and his family went from living a fairly comfortable life to applying for government aid. Tice, still in high school at the time, picked up more hours at work to help out his family, and the money set aside for his college fund had to be used for bills and food. He was responsible for paying for his own education.

“I was in complete panic mode,” Tice said. “I was going to have to take out tons of loans and would be graduating with a mountain of debt.”

The summer before Tice entered The University of Alabama, he found out he was one of three students selected for the Annexstad Leaders for Tomorrow Scholarship Program. The program, offered at only 22 campuses across the country, is in its inaugural year at the University.

“I definitely felt blessed,” Tice, a freshman majoring in marketing and advertising, said.

The Annexstad Family Foundation’s Leaders for Tomorrow Scholarship Program seeks to award students who have overcome adversity and proven leadership qualities, Kady Johnson, program administrator for the foundation, said.

“Higher education and attending college is an enormous struggle that is facing America,” Johnson said in an emailed statement. “Students who come from challenging backgrounds face even bigger financial and personal struggles, especially when it comes to applying to colleges that are top ranked. The Annexstad Family created the Leaders for Tomorrow scholarship to make the dreams of college a reality for deserving students.”

The scholarship program will provide the selected students $25,000 in scholarship funding, which will be payable for the duration of four years. The University of Alabama will join other schools, including Harvard, Vanderbilt and Stanford, who participate in the Leaders for Tomorrow program.

“As the scholarship was being developed, the foundation selected the campuses that historically and academically gave students opportunities to become leaders for the next generation,” Johnson said. “The campuses that we work with are the top institutions in the country, where there is potential for the students who become our scholars to get the best education, campus experiences and the campuses that will best prepare students for life after undergrad. The University of Alabama was an easy and obvious choice for the above reasons.”

Christina Richards, a freshman majoring in biology, is another recipient of the scholarship. She said she was surprised when she was notified of her selection.

“I was in shock, and I kind of freaked out,” she said. “I had scholarship money from academics, but I still didn’t have all of college paid for. So that helped take off some of the stress.”

The Leaders for Tomorrow program awards students who not only show great resiliency but also show potential for being leaders in their field. After graduation, Tice said he hopes to work with nonprofits and ministries creating and running campaigns. Richards said she hopes to attend medical school and eventually become a cardiac surgeon.

Both Richards and Tice said they have been amazed by the investment of the Annexstad Family in the scholars. Tice said Al and Kathy Annexstad came to campus at the beginning of the year to meet the scholars and have continued to keep in touch with them throughout the year.

“There is actually a great deal of contact,” he said. “I was not expecting that.”