What gaps do you see in scholarship opportunities for students?

LisaTatusko

We are currently evaluating our general high school scholarship fund to see if we are making the best impact for our local students. I am reaching out to other foundations, counselors, local students, but wanted to see if any of you have any data or information on what kind of student is being missed by scholarship opportunities. Any thoughts or input, is welcome!

AlyseBraaten

@KristenBeallWatson @CiaraStahly @JuliaDaSilva I feel like you have some great information that could be really valuable here.

KristenBeallWatson

Thanks for bringing this to my attention @AlyseBraaten!

Hi @LisaTatusko - Through a multi-year collaboration with the College Futures Foundation, we shifted our scholarship awarding process to recognize 'strategic, need-based scholars' - those students who have demonstrated the academic fortitude to pursue a postsecondary experience but may not be the class valedictorian. Furthermore, with this model, GPA is not the primary measure of evaluation. Instead we consider, parent education level, estimated family contribution, ethnicity and even gender in making our award decisions. Our goal is to get students who have the aptitude but may face other barriers in getting to college. I would be more than happy to share more details about our program. Feel free to reach out at kristen@kernfoundation.org.