Delanie McClanahan, of Belton, Texas, will put her 2019 National Snaffle Bit Association (NSBA) Foundation Scholarship to good use when she begins 16 years of higher education, as she pursues a career as a neurosurgeon.

To reach her goal, McClanahan will complete four years of undergraduate studies, four years of medical surgeon and eight additional years in neurosurgery residency training. McClanahan will begin her college career at Texas Christian University, where she will major in pre-med.

McClanahan has juggled a top scholastic career at Belton New Tech High School with extracurricular activities such as the Go 2 Crew and National Honor Society as well as an internship at a therapeutic riding facility and fundraising for United Way.

Her love of horses has also taken her into competition in American Quarter Horse Association and NSBA events. McClanahan was a three-time champion at the AQHA Central Novice Championship Show and has placed in the top ten at the Quarter Horse Congress with her horse, A Certain Luxury. Last year, she placed in the top ten at the 2018 NSBA World Championship Show with Dynamic Allnite Long. Furthering her equine interests, McClanahan was also the Texas state 4-H Horsemanship champion in 2018.

“I’m very excited to receive the NSBA scholarship, and to represent NSBA as this year’s winner,” McClanahan said.

Applications are due Feb. 1 of each year. The NSBA Foundation’s volunteer selection committee reviews all applications, essays and scholastic scores to determine the annual recipient.

The NSBA Foundation’s Youth Scholarship program is one of the five programs administered by the Foundation. The Foundation’s scholarship fund relies strictly on donations, and accepts donations of any size as well as special memorial scholarship contributions to present the award each year. For additional information, please visit the Foundation Youth Scholarship section of the NSBA website, www.nsba.com/scholarship-application.