John Petras and Laura Gourlay Scholarship Fund

“We want these kids to know they matter, no matter what they have been through.” This belief led educators and mental health professionals, Laura Gourlay and John Petras, to start a scholarship with the Mt. Pleasant Area Community Foundation. Their fund recognizes both the challenges they have faced and the strength they see in their students and clients.

Laura grew up in a low-income household in suburban Detroit. She is a first-generation college student who received a Masters Degree from Central Michigan University and remained in Mt. Pleasant, spending 39 years with the public schools, including nearly three decades in alternative education. Today, she still counsels elementary students and delights in working with the children and grandchildren of her former students. John, raised in a small Wisconsin town, lost his father at seven and became a first-generation college student. He earned a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Connecticut and joined the CMU faculty, where he taught for over 35 years. The couple met in CMU’s sociology department, married in 1984, and have been partners in teaching and community service ever since. Laura and John are licensed clinical social workers and licensed professional counselors. John is also a licensed marriage and family therapist.

Alongside their work in education, Laura and John founded Mid-Michigan Family, Ltd., therapy practice that helps children and adults who have faced trauma or been in foster care.

Laura’s work often received support from Community Foundation grants, including programs funded by the Esther A. Kraus Peacemaking Fund. These experiences showed her how endowed gifts can provide ongoing scholarships and grants. When Laura and John realized they could give back, they decided to create a fund to help students like those they have served.

“It was a no-brainer to help kids who have had rough starts,” Laura said. This scholarship helps Laura and John continue their lifelong commitment to education and healing. Their legacy will live on in students who, against the odds, will know they matter and have a community behind them.

Established in November 2025, the John Petras and Laura Gourlay Scholarship Fund was created to provide scholarship(s) to Isabella County graduates or GED recipients.