BATON ROUGE — ITI Technical College surprised one of its students on Thursday with a $1,000 scholarship for his hard work and dedication.

Lendrick Eisley Junior is the first recipient of the Thomas 'Tommy' Nicotri Sr. Electric Trade Scholarship. Instructors nominated Eisley for the merit-based scholarship.

“When I heard my name called I was dumbfounded,” Eisley said.

In July, Thomas "Tommy" Nicotri Jr. founded the scholarship a week before his father passed hoping to honor his father’s legacy.

Nicotri described his dad as a hard-working electrician who built his career from the ground up. He said he wanted to reward students pursuing a career in the electrical field with similar values.

“Really motivated, proud of your work, proud of your trade. Really enthusiastic about going forward, to do well in this electrical trade and doing well in the classroom as well,” Nicotri said.

Eisley said he aspires to become an electrician after graduating from school and he hopes to work alongside his dad, Lendrick Eisley Sr., at the Exxon Plant.

Nicotri said he envisions the scholarship to continue to grow and help other students that mirror his Dad's hard work and career. 

If you want to contribute to the scholarship, you can donate through GoFundMe.