WISCONSIN DELLS, Wis. (August 9, 2011) - Through the Ohio Technical College Educational Racing Series (or ERS) at Dells Raceway Park eight students were awarded scholarships on Saturday to pursue their educations. The students had been working with teams to gain experience in their field.

The eight students were assigned to teams and were judged on their devotion to the program, an essay and a review from the team owner. Each student who participated in the program all season long received a scholarship in some form.

The grand prize scholarship winner was Lucas Morse of Poynette. Morse was teamed with Late Model driver Shayne Poehnelt. His situation was unique to the other students who were competing as Morse is already a student at Ohio Tech.

Morse has been traveling the past few weeks back and forth from Ohio to work with Poehnelt at Dells Raceway Park. For his dedication he received a $20,000 scholarship from OTC to continue his education.

Tyler Schoepp of Lodi has been working with Late Model driver Mike Lichtfeld all season long. His assistance has helped Lichtfeld remain at the top of the ultra-competitive field of racers. Schoepp received a $15,000 scholarship to OTC.

Also working on Mike Lichtfeld's team was Justin Schwarz of Sauk City. Schwarz received a $7,500 scholarship.

Two students from Sussex spent the time and energy to make the trips to John DeAngelis Jr.'s shop during the week and make the trip over to Dells Raceway Park on Saturdays. Justin Knight and Shaun Sudik both received $10,000 scholarships for their effort with the DeAngelis team in 2011.

As is the case with Lichtfeld, two OTC students had their hands in a top standing Late Model team. Davey Pennel, who will be a senior at Sparta High School, is the driver of his team's racer. He received $5,000 in scholarship money. Also on the team was Darren Jackson of Wisconsin Rapids. Jackson's involvement gained him $2,500 in scholarship money.

Trent Uselmann, who attends Wisconsin Dells High School, also participated in the program this season and was awarded $2,500 in scholarships. Uselmann worked for multiple teams including his own Bandit division racer and Don Fassett's Pure Stock. On July 16 Uselmann won the Bandit B Main. His first ever career win.

The purpose of the ERS program is to involve high school junior and senior students in the auto racing industry and reward them with scholarships to Ohio Technical College based on their performance on and off the track. High School students apply for the program through their local Admission representatives.

Ohio Technical College is an award-winning, accredited private, proprietary, postsecondary technical college specializing in a wide array of technician training programs in automotive, motorcycle, diesel equipment, collision repair and refinishing, classic car restoration, high performance and racing, alternative fuel vehicles, power generator systems, and BMW. For more information visit www.ohiotechnicalcollege.com.

The next event at Dells Raceway Park is this Saturday, August 13, which brings the return of Super Late Model racing and the Alive For Five Super Late Model Series presented by Advanced Engine Concepts. After his wins in rounds two and three Dalton Zehr of Daytona Beach, Fla. will return in hopes of a third straight win in 2011. The Super Lates will be joined by the Sportsman, Pure Stocks and Bandits. Qualifying is at 4:45 p.m. with racing scheduled to begin at 6:30. Ticket prices are $10 for adults, $7 for students and seniors and 9 and under receive free admission.

Dells Raceway Park is located at N1070 Smith Road, five minutes north of downtown Wisconsin Dells, Wis., off highway 12-16. For more information including the latest news, the 2011 schedule and more visit www.dellsracewaypark.com.