Schools

Scholarship Recipients Honored at Hartford Foundation Reception

New recipients from throughout the area were honored last week at a reception at the University of Saint Joseph in West Hartford.

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The newest recipients in a college scholarship program that awards more than $1 million annually to Greater Hartford students were honored June 5 at the ninth annual Scholarship Recipient Reception held by the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving.

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The reception, held at the University of Saint Joseph in West Hartford, honored 143 students who received new scholarships to attend two-year and four-year schools across the nation. Many of the scholarships are renewable, enabling students to receive significant support (many are for $3,000 per year) for each of their years in college as long as they maintain a good academic record. Students may use the grants for tuition, fees, room and board, and textbooks. 

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Overall, approximately 625 students will receive new and renewed scholarships in 2013 through the Hartford Foundation program, which last year totaled $1.3 million, according to Jennyfer Holmes, who directs the scholarship program at the Hartford Foundation.

The scholarships are awarded through 98 endowed funds created at the Hartford Foundation by individuals, families and organizations. Many of these donors create scholarship funds at the Foundation for personal reasons and the Foundation matches recipients with the donor’s criteria. Many donors also support the General Scholarship Endowment Fund at the Hartford Foundation.

The Hartford Foundation’s scholarship program also includes $140,000 in block grants to local two-year colleges for scholarships to needy students and $100,000 in block grants to local four-year schools for awards to students transferring from community colleges.

Studies continue to link a college education with improved job stability. According to The New York Times, college graduates have gotten through the recession and lackluster recovery with remarkable resilience. The unemployment rate for college graduates in April was 3.9 percent, compared to 7.5 percent for everyone else.

The Hartford Foundation for Public Giving is the community foundation for the 29-town Greater Hartford region, dedicated to improving the quality of life for area residents. The Hartford Foundation receives gifts from thousands of generous individuals and families and in 2012 awarded grants of more than $27 million to a broad range of area nonprofit organizations. For more information about the Hartford Foundation and the scholarship program, visit www.hfpg.org/scholarships or call 860-548-1888


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