Dr. David Essar Scholarship

The David Essar Scholarship is created to encourage and support students majoring in Biology at WSU with an emphasis in the Pre-denistry program.

Criteria

1. Each recipient must be an undergraduate student enrolled full-time and in good standing at Winona State University. (minimum of 12 credits per semester, Fall and Spring)
2. Each recipient must be a declared Biology major with an emphasis in the Pre-dentistry program
3. Each recipient must be classified as a Sophomore, Junior, or Senior
4. Each recipient must have a minimum GPA of 3.0
5. Each recipient must be a U.S. citizen

Biography/Motivation

David Essar was a generous supporter of scholarships at Winona State University. He established this scholarship to support a junior or senior biology student.

David graduated from Gull Lake High School in 1976, from Ferris State College in 1981 with a Masters in Pharmacy and from the University of Iowa in 1989 with a Doctorate in Microbiology. David was a professor of biology at Winona State from 1992 – 2010. He taught courses in molecular biology and microbiology. His primary research focus was tick-borne diseases in southeastern Minnesota and west central Wisconsin. David and his students investigated the prevalence of Lyme disease, human anaplasmosis, and babesiosis in the region. David was awarded the “Professor of the Year” in 1998. This honor was decided by the students voting for their favorite professor at Winona State University.

David passed away on February 3, 2010. David cared deeply for his students and was committed to providing each of them an exceptional education. In his many years at Winona State David taught WSU’s best and brightest students and helped them become outstanding dentists, doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals. Kenneth and Evelyn Essar, David’s parents, wish to continue his legacy through this scholarship in David’s memory.