Each year, the SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) Scholarship Committee receives applications for scholarships from high school seniors located throughout the Copper Corridor (from Catalina to Globe) in Arizona. After the applications are received, Committee Members evaluate each student’s financial circumstances, high school grades and GPA, activities, essays about personal and professional goals and letters of recommendation. Committee Members then conduct interviews and use these criteria to select scholarship recipients. This year, the Committee has selected 14 deserving students to be awarded undergraduate scholarships. As of July, seven are going to two-year programs, five are going to four-year programs and two are undecided.
A pass-through scholarship of $2,000 from SaddleBrooke resident Darlene Carlson was awarded to a student pursuing a four-year STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) degree.
Recently, in light of the ever-rising cost of college tuition, SBCO increased the amount of money given with each scholarship recipient. Student attending two-year colleges now receive $2,500 per year, while those attending four-year institutions receive $5,000 per year. Each student needs to earn a minimum 2.0 GPA each semester, while registered as a full-time student, completing a minimum of 12 credit hours per semester. The scholarship continues until the two or four-year degree is completed. When students have other scholarships or grants that cover their tuition, the SBCO scholarship assists them with room and board and other school related expenses. When a student pursuing a two-year degree completes the required coursework, he/she may pursue additional funding to complete the remaining two years of a four-year degree program.
Members of the Committee are assigned to be liaisons to the scholarship recipients, where they serve as advocates, sounding board and advisors as students tackle the myriad challenges involved in completing a post-high school degree.
The scholarship program is an important way in which SBCO provides local kids with opportunities to succeed. Education is the key to breaking the cycle of generational poverty often found in nearby communities.
