We are excited to announce the twelve winners of this quarter’s scholarships! As students enter a new year, many reevaluate their education goals and find that they need help covering the steep financial burden of higher education. Our quarterly scholarships are aimed at mitigating the sharp edges of tuition costs. This quarter’s winners are:
- Community College Scholarship: Corbin Hayden of Southeastern Illinois College, Raegan Weiler of Western Iowa Tech Community College, Briana Ivey of Robeson Community College, Davon Beane of Cuyahoga Community College, and Na’kasezia Mason of Lawson State Community College
- Undergraduate Scholarship: Colin Clay of Arizona State University, Stephen Rowe of The University of Texas at Arlington, Maggie Morgan of Bloomsburg University, and Kimberly Mayer of the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign
- Graduate Scholarship: Brandy Jones of Brenau University
- Military Scholarship: Latoia Smith of Purdue University Global and Jordin Koonce of Washington State University
The scholarship board was impressed by the dedication, determination, and generosity of the scholarship winners, and in the next couple weeks, we will share more about each of them. In order to help their families and communities, these students have embarked on difficult higher education journeys; and in order to complete these education journeys, these students have had to make many sacrifices.
Our graduate scholarship winner, for example, is working, studying for her MBA, and navigating the challenges of being a single mother. Brandy wants to work in academia as an advisor, helping other students overcome challenges that seem insurmountable. Brandy told our scholarship board, “When I received the email that I won the graduate scholarship, I was beyond excited! This scholarship money will allow me to pay for tuition, books, and the daily expenses of trying to obtain my MBA in Project Management.”
We are thankful for the opportunity to assist Brandy and the other remarkable individuals, and we look forward to seeing what they accomplish!
Optimal’s scholarships are awarded on a quarterly basis. The next round’s deadline is March 31st, 2020, and we encourage you to apply! The application focuses on two main questions: Firstly, how do you plan to use your degree, and where do you see yourself in the next five years? Secondly, what circumstances affect your need for financial aid? For those applying for the military scholarship, there is an additional question about military experience and how that has shaped your current goals and life direction. For more information, an archive of past winners, and for the application itself, you can visit our scholarships page.