News

Students at a Paying for College Bus Tour stop, Reading PA

Philadelphia high school students and their parents get help applying for $10 million in CORE Philly scholarship dollars

The Sallie Mae Fund hosts “Paying for College Workshops” in partnership with Congressman Chaka Fattah, Mayor John F. Street and the Philadelphia School District’s Office of Career and College Awareness

WHAT:	To kick-off the CORE (College Opportunity Resources for Education) Philly Scholarship Program, this series of free Paying for College workshops will provide Philadelphia college-bound high school students and their families with hands-on assistance to complete the CORE Philly Scholarship Application and the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The CORE Philly Scholarship Program will make $10 million in scholarship dollars available to qualified seniors graduating from Philadelphia’s 68 public high schools this year. The deadline for CORE Philly Scholarship applications is Feb. 27. CORE Philly Scholarship applicants also must complete and submit a FAFSA, the application that all college-bound students must complete to begin the financial aid process for college, in advance of the financial aid deadlines at their targeted state colleges and universities.
WHO:	The Sallie Mae Fund, Congressman Chaka Fattah, Mayor John F. Street, the Philadelphia School District’s Office of Career and College Awareness and financial aid advisors from Pennsylvania state-funded colleges and universities.
WHEN & WHERE:	Workshops will be taking place in six locations over four days, Feb. 6, 7, 19 and 20. Families can select the workshop that works best for their location and schedule. Friday, Feb. 6, 6 – 8 p.m. and Saturday, Feb. 7, 10 a.m. – noon John Wanamaker Middle School 1111 Cecil B. Moore Ave. John Bartram High School 2401 S. 67th St. John F. Kennedy Center 734 Schuylkill Ave. Thursday, Feb. 19, 6 – 8 p.m. and Friday, Feb. 20, 6 – 8 p.m. South Philadelphia High School Broad St. and Snyder Ave. Germantown High School 40 E. High Street Northeast High School (TENTATIVE) 1601 Cottman Ave.
MEDIA CONTACTS:	Martha Holler, 703/810-5178, for The Sallie Mae Fund Jacqueline Barnett, 215/387-6404, Congressman Fattah’s office Barbara Grant, 267/246-2958, Mayor Street’s office Roger Jackson, 215/951-7770, School District of Philadelphia’s Office of College and Career Awareness

For more information on the CORE Philly Scholarship Program, including application and guideline information, visit www.corephilly.org. To RSVP for the Paying for College workshop, call 1-877-840-8224.

The Sallie Mae Fund, a charitable organization sponsored by Sallie Mae, achieves its mission—to increase access to a post–secondary education for America's students—by supporting programs and initiatives that help open doors to higher education, prepare families for their investment, and bridge the gap when no one else can. For more information visit www.salliemaefund.org.

CORE (College Opportunity Resources for Education) Philly Scholarship, is a nonprofit organization that unites funding from the School District and the City to award “gap” college scholarships to high school seniors from Philadelphia public schools, including participating charter schools.