MAYOR WALSH ANNOUNCES 2020 CITY SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE TO BOSTON RESIDENTS

MAYOR WALSH ANNOUNCES 2020 CITY SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE TO BOSTON RESIDENTS

BOSTON - Saturday, February 8, 2020 -  Mayor Martin J. Walsh today announced applications are now available for the 2020 City of Boston Scholarship Program. The City of Boston Scholarship Program is designed to support higher education, and is available to Boston residents interested in pursuing an undergraduate degree or continuing education in Massachusetts. "I'm proud the City of Boston works to lift everyone up, and make higher education available to all," said Mayor Walsh. "Through the City of Boston Scholarship Fund, we can help turn students' dreams of attending college a reality. I encourage residents throughout every neighborhood to apply to this program, and look forward to the next generation of leaders gaining the opportunities they deserve to succeed." The City of Boston Scholarship fund is a need-based scholarship that provides up to $10,000 over four years towards tuition, and relies primarily on generous contributions from individuals, organizations and corporations to further the goal of having more Boston residents complete a post-secondary education. During the 2019-2020 academic year, the scholarship program awarded a total of $297,000 to over 120 students representing many different neighborhoods of Boston, and who attend 34 local colleges and universities. This year, the Fund will select 25 new scholarship recipients.  This year's scholarships are supported by generous contributions from Boston residents and corporations, including Arbella Insurance Foundation, Jonathan and Margot Davis, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Herb Chambers Foundation, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Lewis Family Foundation, Santander, Rapid7 and the family and friends of Edward Holland, a devoted Boston Public Schools teacher.  "HMH is deeply committed to improving student outcomes and integral to that goal is supporting need-based scholarship funds like the City of Boston Scholarship program," said Jack Lynch, CEO of learning company Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, "It's an important investment in students right here in our own community, and in the future of the city where HMH was founded and calls home." The Scholarship Committee has worked in recent years to simplify the application process for students. Highlights include an updated online application, a simplified recommendation form that assesses college and career readiness, three short-answer questions in place of a longer essay, an Expected Family Contribution (EFC) calculator for students not eligible for FAFSA, and a clear recognition of financial need among continuing education students.  "As a first generation college student, I never knew that I was going to be able to go to college. Now that I'm in my last year of school, it's a dream come true," said Jose Mendoza, a City of Boston Scholarship recipient and senior at Lesley University, "This scholarship means the world to me because it has lowered the cost of my tuition and it has taken some weight and stress off of me and especially off of my hard-working parents. The City of Boston Scholarship has had a huge impact and I'm grateful to be a recipient."  The City of Boston Scholarship program is part of Mayor Walsh's commitment to ensuring that all Boston residents are able to access and complete their post-secondary education. In 2016, Mayor Walsh launched tuition-free community college for Boston Public Schools graduates, providing a cost-effective entry point into higher education for Boston's young people. Participating colleges now include Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology, Bunker Hill Community College, MassBay Community College, Massasoit Community College, and Roxbury Community College.  Mayor Walsh, in partnership with the Frieze Family Foundation, has also launched the GRAD Last Mile Fund in 2018, an innovative scholarship program designed to provide financial support to Boston students nearing college graduation. Additional resources for residents pursuing higher education can be found on the Mayor's Higher Education Resource page.  In 2017, Mayor Walsh Boston Saves, the City's Children's Savings Account (CSA) program. Boston Saves is a children's savings account program that helps families of Boston Public School students save and plan for their children's college or career training from K2 kindergarten onward. Through Boston Saves, every K2 kindergartner in BPS gets an account with $50 for their future college or career training. Families can get even more money for their child, called Boston Saves Dollars, and track those savings in the Boston Saves Online Savings Center. Candidates for the City of Boston Scholarship Program must be Boston residents who have graduated from high school or have completed G.E.D. programming by the time the awards are made. Additionally, candidates must be planning to attend, or currently attending, a two- or four-year accredited post-secondary institution in Massachusetts.  Residents who meet these eligibility requirements are encouraged to apply here. The deadline to submit applications is April 10, 2020 at 5:00 p.m. For applicants who are renewing their scholarship from a previous year, please email COBscholarship@boston.gov. For more information on the City of Boston Scholarship, or to apply, please visit Boston.gov/scholarship.