The Houston Livestock Present and Rodeo (HLSR), one of many metropolis’s most recognizable annual occasions, can also be one of many largest scholarship suppliers in Texas. In 2026, the group will award greater than $15 million in scholarships to college students throughout the state, persevering with a decades-long custom of supporting youth training via rodeo programming.
The scholarships are a part of the rodeo’s broader 2026 instructional dedication of greater than $30 million, which additionally consists of funding for junior livestock exhibitors and different instructional grants.
“This milestone second of reaching $30 million in a single 12 months highlights the Rodeo’s unwavering dedication to Texas youth and training.”
Chris Boleman, HLSR president and CEO
“This milestone second of reaching $30 million in a single 12 months highlights the Rodeo’s unwavering dedication to Texas youth and training,” HLSR president and CEO Chris Boleman mentioned in an announcement. “Because of our loyal donors, sponsors, greater than 36,000 volunteers and devoted attendees, 2026 will attain historic heights in supporting the subsequent era of leaders, agricultural professionals and organizations that share the Rodeo’s mission.”
For college kids in Houston and throughout Texas, this system represents a serious alternative to assist pay for school or profession coaching.
Greater than 800 scholarships deliberate in 2026
The Houston Livestock Present and Rodeo expects to award greater than 800 scholarships via its varied packages in 2026, making it one of many largest privately funded scholarship initiatives in the US.
Since 1957, the Rodeo has awarded greater than 23,000 scholarships valued at over $320 million.
Scholarships are distributed via a number of main packages that help college students pursuing four-year school levels.
These embody:
Tens of millions directed towards scholarships
In 2026, the Houston Livestock Present and Rodeo will allocate $15,126,000 particularly for scholarships, the biggest portion of its instructional funding.
This consists of:
$11,273,500 for junior present exhibitors
$3,430,880 for instructional program grants
$523,000 for graduate assistantships
These investments help not solely school scholarships but additionally instructional packages throughout Texas establishments and nonprofit organizations.
Scholarships supporting vocational careers
One new element of the 2026 instructional dedication focuses on workforce growth.
The rodeo launched the Space Go Texan Vocational Scholarship, which is able to award 68 scholarships of $6,000 every to college students from counties collaborating within the Space Go Texan program.
For the reason that program’s inception, essentially the most funded fields embody:
Welding and pipefitting
Chemical processing
HVAC
Truck Driving and Upkeep
Building and Manufacturing
Rodeo leaders say the initiative displays rising demand for expert employees in Texas industries and acknowledges {that a} four-year college path will not be the one path to a profitable profession.
Scholarships for college students throughout Texas
Lots of the Houston Rodeo scholarships are open to graduating Texas highschool seniors who show educational achievement and group involvement.
Packages such because the Space Go Texan scholarship supply awards of as much as $20,000 for college students planning to attend nonprofit schools or universities in Texas.
A protracted historical past of instructional help
The scholarship program has been central to the mission of the Houston Livestock Present and Rodeo for many years.
The rodeo awarded its first scholarship in 1957, and since then the group has supplied practically 23,000 scholarships totaling greater than $320 million to greater than 2,300 college students throughout 80 Texas schools and universities.
Practically half of previous scholarship recipients had been the primary of their households to attend school, and greater than one-quarter had been the primary of their households to graduate highschool, in response to the rodeo.
