PROVIDENCE – The College Crusade of Rhode Island has awarded $2 million in scholarships this school year to low-income Rhode Islanders, many of them from the urban districts of Central Falls, Pawtucket, Providence and Woonsocket, the organization said today.
“We warmly congratulate our scholarship students for this academic year,” Mary Sylvia Harrison, the nonprofit’s president and CEO, said in a statement this morning.
“These young people kept a pledge they made when they joined our organization – to stay in school, work hard at academic achievement and contribute to their communities,” Harrison said. “They are an inspiring example to thousands of Crusaders still in middle school and high school who dare to dream of furthering their education and discovering rewarding careers.”
Most of this year’s 580 recipients are attending colleges in southern New England. “Our scholarships for the full year generally range between $2,550 and $4,310,” Karen Donovan, marketing and communications officer for the College Crusade, told Providence Business News in a telephone interview today. The exact amount of the award “depends on where the student is enrolled and what their financial need is.”
To qualify for a College Crusade Scholarship, a student must be a member in good standing of The College Crusade, must stay in school until he or she graduates from high school and must show financial eligibility.
The organization awards scholarships – administered by The College Crusade in partnership with the R.I. Higher Education Authority – to all eligible Crusaders who are accepted to public or private colleges in Rhode Island, and to participating colleges in other states. “Many of these post-secondary institutions generously donate scholarships through their membership in The College Crusade Scholarship Collaborative,” the organization said. (A full list of collaborative members is available online.)
“College Crusade scholarships are an important financial resource for Rhode Island students,” said William H. Hurry Jr., executive director of the R.I. Higher Education Authority. “These scholarships help expand college access for high school graduates who often must overcome many obstacles to attain a post-secondary degree.”
Since 2001, The College Crusade has awarded more than $18 million in college scholarships to more than 2,500 graduates of high schools across Rhode Island.
The College Crusade of Rhode Island is a comprehensive college-readiness and scholarship program that targets middle school and high school students in low-income school districts, serving more than 4,000 students per year. To learn more, visit www.thecollegecrusade.org.
