We are excited to announce that $308,500 in scholarships has been awarded to dozens of students across San Luis Obispo County. Thanks to the support of our donors and leadership from our Board of Directors, 62 scholarships for the 2022-2023 school year were distributed in May of 2022.
For over 20 years, our Scholarship Program has enhanced access to education for students of all backgrounds and academic levels in San Luis Obispo County. The scholarships are as varied as their recipients and span a range of academic interests from nursing to agriculture to technology and beyond.
“Our scholarship program is a reflection of our values as a whole,” said Heidi McPherson, CEO of The Community Foundation SLO County. “We are grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with the donors that make these scholarships possible, and reward students of varying backgrounds and career paths with the financial support needed to pursue higher education.”
In years past, scholarships from The Community Foundation San Luis Obispo County have been used to support room and board fees, tuition, textbook costs, and other qualified education expenses. Unlike loans, these funds do not have to be repaid and cannot be treated as taxable income.
Some of these scholarships include The Riggs Family Scholarship, which was established to help graduating seniors from San Luis Obispo County high schools make a successful transition to a four-year university. The scholarship is open to graduating seniors from a San Luis Obispo County high school with a 2.8-3.8 GPA who demonstrate financial need. The John S. Renner Memorial Scholarship funds LGBTQ+ youth as they aspire to achieve their goals, especially in the fields of creative or performance arts. This scholarship is open to LGBTQIA+ students who are pursuing arts education at either a 2 or 4 year university.
The Yeagar Scholarship fund is a scholarship which provides support to for a graduating senior at Coast Union, Morro Bay or Paso Robles High School who is planning to pursue a degree, at a California public university, in physical or technical science (Physics, Geology, Math, Engineering, Chemistry, Computer sciences or Architecture). This year’s recipient of the $23,000 scholarships is Emiliano Pena Ramirez, who had this to say: “This county is filled with such talented students, and I feel so honored to be selected. My parents did not graduate from middle school and moved to the United States so that me and my siblings would have more opportunities. My parents always stressed the importance of hard work, and it is so special seeing that hard work come to fruition. I’m putting myself through college, so this generous scholarship is a game changer for me.” Emiliano is graduating from Coast Union High School and will be majoring in Aerospace Engineering at Cal Poly.
Students of all academic backgrounds and interests are considered for scholarships based on varying criteria, including but not limited to:
- Financially disadvantaged students who would like to attend a 4-year anniversary;
- First-generation college students whose parents are vineyard or farm workers;
- Students who are part of the LGBTQ+ community;
- Women in science, technology, engineering, math (STEM).
Learn more about scholarships at https://www.cfsloco.org/available-scholarships-2/
