Gary Ketner Memorial Scholarship
The Gary Ketner Memorial Scholarship was established to celebrate the hard work and determination of Gary Ketner, the founder of Systima Technologies. Gary poured his passion, innovation, integrity, and intelligence into creating Systima. To recognize all these characteristics and to celebrate his life, Systima is creating this annual scholarship. Systima will be making a $10,000 contribution to this scholarship annually, which will be split into two $5,000 scholarship awards. Since 2021, Systima and other donors have funded five (5) scholarship awards.
Gary Ketner was the inspiration that a small company needed to get off the ground and fly. His selfless passion and attitude could turn the mundane into the most important task one ever accomplished and transform technically challenging efforts into an achievable mission. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then Gary’s picture is burned into the DNA of every piece of hardware Systima has ever designed and built. Without Gary’s life and influence, the world would be a far lesser experience and engineering and testing would be much less of a joy. Systima will continue partnering with Gary’s alma mater, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Cal Poly is widely recognized as one of the best engineering schools for undergraduate study in the United States. Partnering with Cal Poly enables this scholarship to be awarded in time for the upcoming school year, streamlines the process for donors, and helps evaluate student eligibility through the university’s financial aid office. Eligible students must be planning to pursue an engineering major at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and have a minimum incoming GPA of 3.0. Applicants must demonstrate financial need and are preferred to be first-generation college students.
Those who wish to contribute to the scholarship fund are highly encouraged to do so. Through donor support, more scholarships can be awarded, more students can be sponsored, and more lives impacted. Contributions can be made directly to the scholarship fund at Cal Poly online by clicking ‘Give Now’ below, or by sending a check to Scholarship Office, Heron Hall, Building 117, San Luis Obispo, CA 93407-0444. Be sure to list the ‘Gary Ketner Memorial Scholarship’ on the check memo line. Thank you in advance for your support and for honoring Gary Ketner.