SECU, Maryland's largest financial cooperative, recently awarded college scholarships to two Harford County residents.

The scholarships, which SECU awards annually to Maryland state employees who are SECU members or members of their immediate families, were presented to Casey Knell, of Forest Hill ($1,000), and Kristen Anne Lewis, of Joppa ($2,000).

Knell and Lewis are attending, respectively, the University of Delaware and Cedarville University in Ohio.

The scholarships were awarded at a ceremony held at the Goldstein Treasury Building inAnnapolis.

In its fifth year, the scholarship program is designed to make a positive contribution to the financial well-being of those SECU serves by encouraging members to plan for their financial futures.

According to a SECU news release, scholarship winners were selected based on their submission of a 750 to 1,000-word essay.