Largest scholarship for community college students and recent alumni offered

Nominees for the Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship Program may include exceptional Saint Paul College transfer students with financial need

The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation has opened the nominations process for the largest scholarships available to students and recent alumni from community colleges.

Through the initiative, called the Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship Program, the private foundation will award up to $30,000 annually per recipient to help students and recent alumni from community colleges and two-year institutions pursue four-year degrees at any accredited college or university in the United States. Last year, the Foundation received approximately 700 nominations for these awards.

While 45 percent of all college students in the US attend community colleges, few private funds are available to help top community college students transfer to four-year institutions, in spite of their high levels of ability and need. The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation scholarships can provide funding for tuition, room and board, required fees, and books for the length of the undergraduate degree, generally two years. Each award can total up to $30,000 annually, though the amounts will vary based on such factors as the cost of the institution each recipient attends.

The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation is a private foundation dedicated to helping young people of exceptional promise reach their full potential through education. The Foundation provides challenging opportunities to high achievers from lower-income families through its Young Scholars Program, generous scholarships for undergraduate and graduate study, and grants to nonprofit organizations and educational institutions. For more information about the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, go to www.jkcf.org.

The Foundation plans to award approximately 60 scholarships through this program in spring, 2012. It will renew awards each year based upon student performance.

Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Scholarship.pdf

Current students are eligible, as are alumni who earned a degree from Saint Paul College since spring 2007 and have not since transferred to a four-year college.

The application deadline for Saint Paul College students to apply for nomination is November 21, 2011. All Saint Paul College candidates for the scholarship must be nominated by Lisa Christensen, director of Student Life. The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation does not accept applications directly from students.

To be eligible for the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship Program, a Saint Paul College candidate must:

Be a current student at Saint Paul College with sophomore status, OR a recent graduate (within the last five years),
Have a cumulative college grade point average of 3.50 or better on a 4.0 scale (or the equivalent),
Plan to transfer to a four-year college or university to begin studies in the coming fall,
Be nominated by Lisa Christensen, director of Student Life and
Have significant unmet financial need.

To learn more about the nomination process stop by the Student Life office, e-mail Lisa Christensen, or call 651.846.1659.