District 5440 Rotary Scholarship Representatives:
Welcome back to a new school year! I am reaching out to confirm that you are still your club representative for the scholarship committee and to review some information about the available scholarships. District 5440 will again be offering two types of scholarships this year:
• $2,000 undergraduate scholarship
• $30,000 graduate study abroad scholarship
Last year our district awarded four undergraduate scholarships and one graduate study abroad scholarship to students selected by Rotary clubs in our district.
There is a simplified application process for the undergraduate scholarship so that each region can determine the date by which they need the applications submitted. Also, the only documents needed for the application are the student's resume and an essay on one of Rotary's six areas of focus (Water and Sanitation, Disease Prevention and Treatment, Peace and Conflict Resolution, Education and Literacy, Economic and Community Development, Maternal and Child Health) and how it relates to the student's past, present and future. An applicant need not have a specific course of study selected but only demonstrate a sincere interest in one of the six areas from previous experiences and future goals. Standard practice is that each club can select one applicant and then submit these two documents to their regional scholarship chair.
There will again be one graduate level study abroad scholarship awarded. This is a more lengthy process and will need to be started sooner in order to meet the deadlines--see the attached global grant scholarship document for more information.
I am happy to continue to serve as the regional scholarship chair again this year. I would like to outline some common agreements for our District 5440 scholarship process this year before we get going. It appears that past practice (two years ago) was that our region collected all scholarships through Aims Community College. Last year, we only had one applicant from Aims, and other clubs within our region submitted its one selected applicant (based on standard practice). We reviewed the applicants and then selected the applicant whom we felt best addressed how they would support one of Rotary's six areas of focus (along with meeting the Four-Way Test). Here are the questions I would like to reach consensus on before we proceed:
1. Who is on our regional committee? Please confirm that you are your club's representative. If this is not you, please provide updated contact information for who is.
2. What is our timeline for information dissemination and application collection?
3. Do we want to limit applications to Aims students only?
4. If not, should we stick to the standard practice of each club selecting one applicant, finally selecting one applicant from our region?
Thank you for your feedback and for your commitment to our kids!
Matt Thompson
Greeley Centennial Rotary
(970) 590-8085
Sincerely,
Matt Thompson, Principal
Dos Rios Elementary School
An International Baccalaureate World School
(970) 348-1309
mthompson@greeleyschools.org
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