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The Community Foundation administers a number of endowed scholarship funds that are established by people and organizations wanting to assist Palm Beach and Martin County high school students in continuing their education beyond high school. The original charitable gifts are invested and the income earned each year is paid out annually in the form of grants to qualified scholarship recipients. Below are a number of frequently asked questions and answers about our scholarship program. For more information please contact Carolyn Hollis-Jenco, Scholarship Manager.
The eligibility criteria are given under each of the funds listed on the Community Foundation’s website. Click here to view a list of the individual scholarships and their criteria. Each fund has specific eligibility requirements that must be met before one is eligible for a particular scholarship. Some are restricted to students from a specific school or those pursuing a particular field of study, while others are more general. Most of the scholarships, however, require that applicants:
• Be a graduating high school senior from a public or independent high school located in Palm Beach or Martin County
• Be a resident of Palm Beach or Martin County
• Demonstrate financial need
• Plan to attend an accredited vocational school, two or four-year college or university
• Be a full-time student
• Demonstrate academic achievement
All scholarships are for colleges, universities, or vocational schools in the United States. Individual awards vary from a one-time award of $1,000 to multiple year awards of $2,500 per year. Scholarship awards may be used to subsidize the student’s attendance at the college of their choice. This usually consists of tuition, fees, room and board, transportation and personal expenses as listed in the school’s “cost of attendance”. These awards are charitable grants that are not required to be paid back. Students may apply for more than one scholarship.
Scholarship recipients are selected by Community Foundation Scholarship Committees on the basis of the applicant's academic record, potential to succeed, demonstrated leadership and participation in school and community activities, work experience, a statement of education and career goals, and unusual personal or family circumstances. Recipients are selected on an objective and competitive basis considering academic and non-academic factors. A personal interview for finalists is required. All scholarships are approved by the Foundation's Board of Directors.
A needs analysis is conducted by the Community Foundation that considers the total cost of education, the expected family contribution, and other grants and loans awarded to the student. Scholarship finalists will be contacted in March or April to schedule an interview and are asked to provide information to the Community Foundation on other grants or loans awarded by schools and other funding sources. This data is used in determining the amount of each award from the Community Foundation's Endowed Scholarship Funds. The information is held in strictest confidence.
Interested students must complete the online application and submit all required supporting information to the Community Foundation. Online applications must be completed and submitted by midnight on January 31. Supporting information can be mailed to the Community Foundation offices or scanned into the online application. If the supporting documents are not scanned into the online application, they must be delivered to the Foundation office on or before 5:00 p.m. February 1 or postmarked by January 31. Please place all of the supporting information into one envelope. Information will not be accepted via fax or email.
Recipients of the various scholarships are announced at awards ceremonies in May, at the Community Foundation offices in West Palm Beach. Notices are also sent to area newspapers.
The scholarship payments will be sent by the Community Foundation directly to the student's college, university or vocational school. Scholarships over $1,000 are broken up into equal payments. To obtain subsequent payments, students must submit their transcript (on official university paper) showing proof of full-time enrollment and passing grades for the semester just completed, proof of a minimum 2.0 GPA, and verification of full time enrollment for the next semester has been submitted to the Community Foundation. Students should also submit the “Request for Disbursement” that can be found in the “Forms” area of the Scholarship section on the
Community Foundation’s web site.
Hard copies of the scholarship directory are no longer being printed. The directory is available to view and download at the Community Foundation’s website. This year, the directory has been divided into two versions. One version lists organizations offering scholarships that are only for Martin County students. The second version lists organizations offering scholarships that are only for Palm Beach County students. Both versions offer extras such as statewide and nationwide organizations offering scholarships as well as links to other helpful scholarship search websites along with a glossary of financial aid terms. The directory can be downloaded by clicking here. |
