Single Parent Scholarship recipients and donors celebrate together

 

story and photos by Ruby Dean
[email protected]

A rising divorce rate has increased the number of single parents making the choice to go back to college to make a better life for them and their children.

Approximately 20% of today’s college student population are single parents. For a single parent, getting a college education may seem impossible. Bills such as mortgage, child-care, utilities and finding the time to study are only a few of the worries single parents have to juggle when going back to college.

Single Parent Scholarship Fund helps single parents go back to college. The SPSF is an organization with a 23-member board of directors, and was begun in its present form through an incubation period with United Way in the fall of 2004.

Nanette McClain, Kathy Johnson and Michelle Cox are three single parents going to college. Without SPSF help, the three women would not have had the chance to go back to college to earn a degree. The organization has not only given them a scholarship, but also has been a great support system. The help they have received has not only made a difference in their lives, but also in the lives of their family.

The women and SPSF donors gathered for dinner Thursday night (May 13) at the Hanna Oil & Gas headquarters in downtown Fort Smith.

McClain wants her children to see how important it is to go to college right out of high school rather than struggle for several years trying to get an education. The women believe they may have been able to go back to college, but it would have taken a lot longer to get finished and definitely more stressful for them. The foundation has opened doors that were closed before for these women.

How do single parents get a scholarship? First, they must fill out an application, which is available at the SPSF Web site. Recipients must be enrolled in any post-secondary program that will increase their income-earning potential. Students also go through a personal interview prior to each semester in which they apply.  Both board members and non-board members are recruited to interview the applicants.

Grants of $750 are awarded to full-time students and part-time students are granted from $375 to $562.50 based on course load. All recipients must maintain a 2.0 grade point average. Grants are awarded in two installments; half at the beginning of the semester and half after midterm grades are submitted to confirm that the recipients are still enrolled and making progress. You must reapply every semester for the grants.

The money that the single parents receive goes directly to the single parents, male and female. The money can be used to remove any barrier to the recipient’s success whether it be childcare, groceries, utilities or rent.

Along the journey, recipients receive encouragement from the board members and community volunteers. Recipients say this has made the journey easier.

From 2005 to Spring 2010, 443 scholarships totaling $229,744 were given. In addition, SPSF has awarded 22 merit scholarships totaling $14,950 with a grand total of 465 scholarships worth $244,694. January of this year, SPSF gave 51 scholarships for $33,750. In 2009, 86% of applicants either stayed in school or graduated.