(Radio Iowa) – Iowans who grew up in four northwest Iowa counties may be eligible for incentives to return to the area after they earn a college degree. Iowa Lakes Corridor Development Corporation represents Buena Vista, Clay, Dickinson and Emmet Counties. Curt Strouth, the foundation’s C-E-O, says the “Homegrown Talent” initiative will offer scholarships of up to six-thousand dollars.

“We’ll provide those payments in installments over four years, at $1500 per year, and we’ll pay those directly to the student’s loan provider, so we’re excited about that,” Strouth says. “Everybody’s looking for ways to reduce that student loan debt and this will be a way for us to accomplish that by helping the student, but more importantly bringing those kids back here to northwest Iowa.” The foundation is setting up a scholarship committee to review applications.

“There’ll be procedures in place on how we need to score the applications,” Strouth says, “and maybe some specific sectors of the workforce that we need to identify.” The Iowa Lakes Corridor Foundation will host a golf tournament in Spencer on August 5th as its first fundraiser for the project.

Other communities have taken similar steps in hopes of luring natives to move back. For example, the City of Clinton and Clinton County have a Student Loan Assistance Program that provides eligible residents 30 dollars a month for up to five years to pay off student loan debt.