Children's Scholarship Fund
Grants Dept.
The children's scholarship fund was founded in 1998 with the aim of
giving every child, regardless of their family's income, a chance to have a
quality education. The organization's founders believe that the best quality of
education can be found in private schools, and that public schools have less to
offer in terms of developing the children the right way; so the aim of the
scholarship program is to help families pay the cost of their children's
education in private schools only.
The foundation believes that families should have a choice when it comes to
choosing the type of education a child receives, even when they cannot afford to
do so. The scholarship program provides funding for children up to the 8th
grade. It partners with 35 organizations all over the United States just to meet
the needs of under privileged children. The program has funded over 110,000
children since it began in 1999. It is presently the only k-8 scholarship
available in the United States.
There has been much outcry over the state of public schools in the country
and the reality is that now public schools are far from where we want our
children to be.
Despite the money it provides, the children's scholarship fund is not a fully
funding scholarship. The families involved still have to make a contribution
towards their children's education; the fund will only pay part of the fees on
behalf of the family. The family contribution is a minimum of $500 annually.
Children must be at least 5 years old and starting kindergarten or a higher
class to be eligible for the scholarship awards.
Families of the children involved also have to earn below a set minimum level
for the children to be eligible. These are the general set of rules guiding the
children's scholarship fund but they might vary slightly in participating
states. The recipients and order of the scholarship awards are also determined
by the individual states so specific information relating to the fund will have
to be sourced from them.
The demand for the scholarship in many states is very high and there are huge
waiting lists of families who would like to receive the scholarship. Sometimes
these lists have over 3,000 names on them. As more funds become available, more
names are chosen to be awarded the scholarship.
Many families do not apply for the scholarship because they think their
children do not qualify based on their grades, but the requirements for this
scholarship award are not performance based. The family income is what decides
if a family gets the scholarship or not. Eventually the scholarship recipients
are drawn from a form of lottery and nothing else. Once a family is drawn from
the list of applicants, any child listed as a dependent, is currently in public
school or yet to be enrolled at kindergarten is eligible for the scholarship.
This rule might vary slightly from state to state.
The scholarship can be used at any private school of the family's choice and
funds up to $2,000 with the family responsible for the remainder. Amounts paid
by the foundation vary according to the family income and a sliding scale of 25,
50 and 75% is used to determine how much the family is funded. The scholarship
can be transferred provided it is to be used at another private school, it can
also be used anywhere in the United States regardless of the state it was
awarded. For a scholarship transfer to take place you only have to get in touch
with the foundation office in the state and they'll send the necessary paperwork
to document the transfer.
How to apply:
The first step in applying is to find the children's scholarship fund partner
program nearest to you. You need to check if your state offers the program.
The best way of checking that is visiting the fund's
website where they have a
list of all the states and cities that currently offer scholarships. If your
state is not listed you'll have to find alternative programs. But don't worry,
there's also a good list of other scholarships and tuition assistance programs
that will suit your needs. If your state is listed, you only have a few steps to
take.
Contact the partner program to check if you are eligible, income requirements
vary among states. If you are eligible, request the application form. It could
be emailed to you. Fill out the forms and have them returned to the program
office. You will also have to submit supporting documents as well. These
documents will probably include tax forms and other income verification
documents.
You will also need to provide a copy of your child/children's school reports if they are already enrolled in a public school. You are also required to obtain the signature of the principal of the private school you intend to enroll your child in. when you complete these requirements and submit your form, the only other thing you have to do is wait and hope your name is drawn.
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