Student lives – and colleges’ financial aid offices – were complicated in lots of ways by the pandemic. As we return to normal, here’s how your disbursements can be most impactful for the Class of 2021.
Send checks sooner rather than later. Students need funds as soon as they arrive on campus to buy books or pay for housing.
Send payments with instructions. Whether you send the check to the student or their school, include a cover letter with instructions for applying the funds and a chapter contact to return any funds if the student withdraws from the institution.
Make it easier on everyone; make one payment. Send one payment for the academic year vs. two (or more) semester payments.
Bypassing the financial aid office won’t help your students. Even if you send checks to students directly, their financial aid office needs to be informed of the award.
Help your students keep their financial aid. Scholarship America’s Collegiate Partners agree to treat our scholarships fairly, and some even match a portion of the scholarship you provide.
The Class of 2021 has come through an extraordinary year, and they’ll be taking your scholarships and encouragement with them to campuses this fall. Even if you are not hosting in-person events, there are ways to announce your student and Dollars for Scholars accomplishments – including social media and local news features like these!
Marblehead Dollars for Scholars thanks local businessesfor partnership in supporting scholarships for local students during the pandemic.
Fergus Falls Dollars for Scholars surpasses $1 million in scholarships awarded since 1991!
Nancy Eldrege Hess, Fergus Falls Dollars for Scholars Executive Director, credits this milestone to her community’s “giving spirit and shared desire to invest in the future. That future is the more than 1,200 students who have received scholarships helping them reach their goals and dreams.” Celebrating this major accomplishment, recipients have shared in local news stories what their Dollars for Scholars has meant to their lives.
Stamford Dollars for Scholars has posted its Class of 2021 awards in this short video.
ChapterNet Updates This Summer
August 2 - Enhancements in ChapterNet: This summer’s enhancements will include the ability to opt-out additional sections of the student profile, the ability to record comments on a student’s application, and more. Details on the enhancements and expected system unavailability will be made available closer to this date.
September 1 - Annual Archive: Each new scholarship year, we archive data in ChapterNet to ensure it continues to run efficiently. You can find details in the “ChapterNet Guide: Annual Archive” in Affiliate Resources. Please wrap up this year’s scholarship awards prior to this date so that all 2021 records get appropriately archived.
September 1 - Inactive Student Data Removal: We will be permanently deleting inactive records and the 2014 Archive from ChapterNet. For more details, please read the email that was sent to Presidents, Executive Directors, Chapter Super Administrators, and Scholarship Managers on June 17, 2021.
Reminders
Online donation transition: As of November 1, online donations to your Dollars for Scholars will no longer be processed through the Scholarship America website. See previous communications for details.
Enhanced Dr. Irving Fradkin Legacy Award program: Nominate your Dollars for Scholars today for a Dr. Irving Fradkin Legacy Award – visit Affiliate Resources for details and the nomination form.
Next Dollars for Scholars Connect sessions are August 26, 5PM PT/ 7PM CT/ 8PM ET -- mark your calendars.
