Your Support Makes Higher Education More Affordable

  • Sep 3, 2020

You boosted students’ higher education endeavors to the tune of more than $150,000 in Foundation scholarship awards this year. And your continued and increased support of the Foundation Scholarship Program now stretches even further to unleash intelligence.

You are driving up the number of recipients as well as their awards. Your scholarships are helping pave smoother educational paths for more students around the world — to wit, this spring we doled out 190 scholarship awards (from a record 19,000 applicants) at the local, regional, national, and international levels.

As the latest scholarship season commences — applicant essays can be submitted starting Sept. 15 — your support continues to provide even more opportunities.

Thanks to an anonymous gift establishing four $7,000 scholarships for women pursuing degrees in STEM fields. And the $1,000 First Timer’s Grant, endowed by Mensa Life Member Lynda Harris, will support students who are the first in their families to earn more than 12 college credits. Finally, the new $600 CGM Health Careers Scholarship will help support students studying medicine, pharmacy, veterinary science, nursing, respiratory therapy, physical therapy, or other allied health fields.

Before Ramona Roe of Little Rock, Ark., passed away on April 5, she included a gift in her estate to establish a $5,000 scholarship for exceptional students. A Life Member of Mensa, Ramona saw first-hand the benefit of a quality education, earning her bachelor’s in English and journalism from the University of Arkansas and a J.D. from the UALR William H. Bowen School of Law.

She put those degrees to use in a storied career but also made time to volunteer as a judge in the Foundation Scholarship Program, saying that she enjoyed reading about what applicants wanted to achieve with their education.

“Ramona’s passion for helping those who seek to further their education shone through each year as scholarship judge,” Foundation Director Jill Beckham said. “We’re honored that she found in our Foundation a mission worthy of her dedication.”