Plugging the Brain Drain

One of the main objectives of John A. White, who took over a year ago as UA chancellor, is to lure the state’s best students by offering Chancellor’s Scholarships — which pay for tuition, books, room and board for four years. The scholarships are valued at about $32,000 each, and more will be offered before the fall semester begins, White says. White plans to pay for the scholarships by “reallocating” money in the budget.

Last year, then-Chancellor Dan Ferritor offered 119 Chancellor’s Scholarships. Forty-two students accepted and enrolled at the UA — for a total value of $1.3 million for the scholarships.

Chancellor’s Scholarships are awarded to students who have a 3.5 grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) in high school and score 30 or higher on the ACT, a standardized college entrance exam.

There’s no direct correlation between the scholarships and the honors program, but UA administrators thought the honors enrollment might be an indication of how many students are accepting the scholarships since many of the recipients will also enroll in the honors program.

The final numbers concerning both scholarship recipients and honors program enrollees won’t be available until the fall semester begins in August.