Marietta College students earn prestigious AAPL scholarships

by Tom Perry

Marietta, OH (05/15/2024) — Four students from Marietta College's Land & Energy Management program received highly competitive scholarships from the American Association of Professional Landmen (AAPL).

The Landman Scholarship Trust awarded 67 scholarships nationwide.

Marietta's Mckenna Hewitt '25 (Daisytown, Pennsylvania), Carter McCorkle '25 (Wheelersburg, Ohio), Jakob Smith '25 (Red House, West Virginia), and Marco Vesce '26 (Coraopolis, Pennsylvania) were each honored with $5,000 scholarships.

"Once I heard of my selection to be a recipient of the AAPL Landman Scholarship Trust, I felt very honored and grateful that they had seen what my hard work and dedication meant to me as a student and future landman," McCorkle said.

He is an intern at Hilcorp Energy in Houston, Texas, working for Harvest Midstream in the land department.

"This scholarship and internship are immensely gratifying and affirming of my education and my professors' dedication at Marietta College in teaching students meaningful and impactful knowledge about the industry and serving as an AAPL-accredited program," McCorkle said.

Hewitt is a two-time recipient of the scholarship.

"Financially, this scholarship is beneficial to my family and me," Hewitt said. "Having to pay college tuition by myself can be difficult while trying to manage academics, athletics, and a job. However, with the help of this scholarship, this lessens the burden of expenses while pursuing my education at Marietta."

She is interning with American Consolidated Natural Resources (ACNR), a coal mining company operating out of the Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia area.

"While at the company, I will be working alongside the land department as a land intern," said Hewitt, who competes on the track & field team. "As I am getting ready to finish up my first week with ACNR, I have learned a tremendous amount not only about coal but also about all the processes involved in obtaining and distributing this energy resource."

Vesce is a real estate representative intern at Rally Point Resources in Pittsburgh.

"I was thrilled not only for myself but for the other students as well. It is pretty special that four MC students won the scholarship," Vesce said. "Receiving this scholarship will help relieve some stress off my family and me. I'll be able to get school paid for a little sooner post-graduation and have some money I wouldn't have had otherwise."

Smith is an intern with Potesta & Associates, Inc., out of its Charleston, West Virginia, office for a second summer.

"Last year, I split my time between the office and the field," he said. "In the office, I observe data from different construction projects and implement the information into Microsoft Excel spreadsheets. In the field, my work ranges from going out with the land survey crew to acting as an inspector on job sites."

Each student raved about the education they are receiving at Marietta.

"Coming to Marietta has been one of the best decisions I have ever made, and I cannot thank my advisor/professor and mentor, Tina Thomas, enough for the effort and willingness she has put into the program," Hewitt said. "She has prepared me for this internship and career field thanks to her classes and personal experience. I look forward to continuing my next two years as a Pioneer and joining The Long Blue Line."

Smith added, "I am thankful to Marietta College for allowing me to pick a career path that excites me and gives useful insight into how to be successful in the Land and Energy Management field."

Located in Marietta, Ohio, at the confluence of the Muskingum and Ohio rivers, Marietta College is a four-year liberal arts college. Tracing its roots to the Muskingum Academy, founded in 1797, the College was officially chartered in 1835. Today, Marietta College serves a body of 1,200 full-time students. The College offers over 50 majors and is consistently ranked among the top regional comprehensive colleges by U.S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review. Marietta was selected seventh in the nation according to the Brookings Institution's rankings of colleges by their highest value added, regardless of major.

###