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

The Sallie Mae Fund awards $2.5 million in college scholarships to more than 1,000 students nationwide this school year

More than 5,000 students have received $12.7 million in scholarships from The Fund since 2001

RESTON, Va., Oct. 22, 2007—The Sallie Mae Fund, a charitable organization sponsored by Sallie Mae, announces awards of $2.5 million in its six major scholarship programs. Through these awards, The Fund is helping more than 1,000 students pursue a college education.

Recipients of The Sallie Mae Fund scholarships are enrolled at more than 500 colleges in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. They are studying for careers in business, teaching, law, international relations, medicine and other fields.

These scholarships are part of The Sallie Mae Fund’s effort to increase access to higher education for lower-income and minority students by addressing three common barriers—awareness of financial aid, academic performance and financial need. Since 2001, The Sallie Mae Fund has awarded more than $12.7 million in scholarships to more than 5,000 students.

“As the cost of higher education continues to rise, The Sallie Mae Fund is proud to help fill the gap for so many students who are working hard to make an investment in their futures,” said Kathleen deLaski, president, The Sallie Mae Fund.

In 2007, more than 14,000 completed applications, a record number, were submitted to The Fund by college-bound students across the country.

Scholarship recipients include students like Steve Doby, a sophomore at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Md., who is the oldest of four brothers and the first to attend college in his family. “The scholarship really gives me an opportunity to ultimately lay out a beautiful path for my brothers to walk on so they wouldn’t have to go through the same disadvantages that I had to go through,” he said. Doby is a recipient of the American Dream Scholarship.

A Community College Transfer scholarship is helping Georgina Ruiz, who completed her studies at El Paso Community College in Texas last year, to go on to pursue a bachelor’s degree. Since elementary school, Ruiz has worked to overcome a disability and now, at University of Texas at El Paso, she feels she is succeeding. “I am not seen as a person with a disability anymore,” she said. “I am seen as a college student with goals in life.”

Another scholarship recipient is one of a growing number of American college students who are working adults with families. In addition to holding a part-time job, Tanya is a mother, a wife, and a full-time college student at University of Illinois at Chicago, with assistance from a First in My Family Scholarship. “I know that only with a college education will I be able to provide my daughter with the hope for a better life and the opportunity for her to one day go to college, too,” she said.

Garrick Cornish received an Unmet Need Scholarship to cover the financial gap for his education at University of Delaware. “I lost my grandmother a couple of years ago, so I know now she’s looking down just smiling, I know she’s proud,” he said. “She used to tell me I could do anything I wanted to do as long as I work hard and put my mind to it, and so far, since I’ve been doing that, it has been working.”

By 2015, there will be an additional 5 million college-age individuals in the United States. Approximately 80 percent of this growth is projected to come from minority populations with greater financial need. To help meet these needs, The Sallie Mae Fund provides scholarships through a number of initiatives, including:

“American Dream” Scholarship Program: The American Dream program was developed in partnership with the United Negro College Fund and offers scholarships ranging from $500 to $5,000 to African-American students with demonstrated financial need. This year, 179 African-American students received a total of $500,000 in scholarships.
Community College Transfer Scholarships: Offered in collaboration with the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, this program provides last-dollar scholarships to Latino students transferring from a community college to an accredited higher education institution. This year, 36 students won awards ranging from $1,000 to $2,500.
“First in My Family” Scholarship Program: The Sallie Mae Fund developed the First in My Family program in partnership with the Hispanic College Fund in 2001. This year, 158 Hispanic-American students who are the first in their family to attend college received scholarships ranging from $500 to $5,000.
The Sallie Mae 911 Education Fund: Created in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, this fund provides scholarship dollars to children of those who were killed or permanently disabled in the attacks. This year, The Fund provided scholarships of $2,500 to 20 students.
“Unmet Need” Scholarship Program: Open to families with a combined income of less than $30,000, Unmet Need scholarships provide a “last-dollar” resource when no other funds are available. This year, The Sallie Mae Fund awarded more than $1 million to help 335 students bridge the financial need gap.
“Writers of Passage” Scholarship: In partnership with the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education, this essay competition awarded four students from a Historically Black College or University, or a predominantly black college, with a $5,000 college scholarship. Universities of scholarship winners each received a $20,000 grant from The Sallie Mae Fund to help improve student outreach and retention.

In addition, The Fund awards scholarships ranging from $250 to $1,000 to future college students at its free Paying for College workshops and bus tour stops. More than 200 students will receive a total of $140,000 through this year’s program.

For a complete listing of 2007–2008 scholarship recipients and the schools they are attending, or for 2008–2009 scholarship information, please visit www.salliemaefund.org.

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

Contact:

Patricia Nash Christel
703-984-5382
202-262-1531 cell
patricia.christel@salliemae.com