The American Red Cross is partnering with Pocono Medical Center to sponsor a $1,000 scholarship for local high school students in Monroe County. The scholarship is to encourage more students to get involved in lifesaving community services like blood and platelet donation, volunteerism and donor recruitment.

"Our support through these scholarships is rooted with the intent to create awareness and further educate the students on becoming leaders and advocates of health for our community," said Geoffrey M. Roche, Director of Public and Government Affairs of Pocono Medical Center.On average, the Red Cross must collect 14,000 blood donations every day for patients at about 2,600 hospitals and transfusion centers across the country. Nearly 20 percent of those donations come from students. The Red Cross could not meet patient needs without donations from students."Volunteer blood donors are needed every day to keep the nation's blood supply at adequate levels," said Veronica Torres, district manager for the Northeastern Pennsylvania Blood Services Region.The Pocono Medical Center High School Scholarship is available to high schools in Monroe County who schedule and host at least two Red Cross blood drives during the academic school year. The scholarship will be awarded to a student based on their blood drive involvement during the 2016-17 academic school year. For more information, contact Jacqueline Dercole at

jacqueline.dercole@redcross.org.