NSSGA awards Barry K. Wendt Memorial Scholarship

The National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association (NSSGA) awarded Kyle Ressler, a rising senior mining engineering major at the University of Kentucky, with the annual Barry K. Wendt Scholarship.

The $2,500 scholarship, named after a former NSSGA member who the organization says devoted his energy to advancing the causes of the aggregate industry, is awarded to a student pursuing a mining-related degree that plans to make a career in the aggregates industry.

Ressler recently completed an internship at Martin Marietta while maintaining a 4.0 GPA. He said in his application that while he always was interested in engineering, he found a passion for mining engineering while in college. Ressler hopes to start a career as a management associate employee with a large aggregate producer, subsequently working in operations before moving to engineering.

“Overall, I believe it is important to work in operations before going to the engineering discipline because without the hands-on and practical knowledge, the probability of poorly designed systems would increase,” Ressler says.

Brad Flora, CFO of Greenville, Ohio-based Drake Rural Electric Cooperative and a supervisor of Ressler’s, says his future is bright.

“I do not say this lightly – the potential for Kyle Ressler is endless,” Flora says. “I cannot, in any way, shape or form, imagine anything less than a stellar college career and, after school, his contributions to any company that chooses him will be superior to others around him.”