Grants & Funds

The following information is presented as a guide to individuals and organizations considering the establishment of a scholarship or fund for students attending Superior’s public schools.

First Consideration

The first thing you will need to decide is how you want to use your contribution. You can establish a scholarship or create a fund, the money from which will go for some purpose other than to assist a student achieve post secondary education. The Foundation is a qualified Foundation and your gift/donation is fully tax deductible (Federal Tax Identification No.: 39- 6004736; IRS Letter of Determination available for inspection.).

Type of Scholarship

Will you establish an endowed or temporary scholarship? An endowed scholarship requires a certain level of contribution, usually at least $10,000. The benefit of an endowed scholarship is that it lasts forever and as such honors the donor (or person(s) or organization honored by the donor) and benefits students forever. The other benefit of an endowed scholarship is that it will grow and as inflation raises costs of education, the amount of the annual scholarship can also be
increased.

A temporary scholarship is created by a donation of an amount not sufficient for endowment. It may last for one year or several. You may want to consider contributing to the Memorials Fund (see below) or you can create a personal scholarship to honor a person or organization for a few years. It is also possible to create a temporary scholarship immediately with the intention of making annual contributions sufficient to make the scholarship endowed over time.

Or you may contribute to an existing fund or scholarship. Many of the existing scholarships or funds are able to accept donations.

Whatever you select for type of scholarship, you will also have to consider some of the
following:

Selection Committee
Superior High School has a Scholarship Selection Committee that reviews available scholarships and prepares informative scholarship booklets for student and parent use. The committee also screens scholarship applications and awards scholarships based on the criteria established for specific scholarships and awards.

An organization establishing either a one-time or continuing scholarship may elect to appoint/elect a scholarship selection committee from its own membership. In this case, scholarship information will be included in the Scholarship Information booklet distributed to senior students.

You do need to remember that while you or the donor organization select the recipient, the criteria must conform to the basic policy of the Superior Scholarship Foundation concerning discrimination and other factors related to our tax exempt status and school board policy.

Criteria
What will you want the recipient to do in order to receive the award? You may want to consider school grades. A “C” average is acceptable for admission to Technical and Vocational Colleges, Community Colleges, and some four-year colleges and universities. A “B” average or better is often required for admission to competitive four-year institutions.

It is not necessary to specify grade point average or class rank as students must meet acceptable levels of academic achievement to be admitted to most post-secondary programs and institutions. Some donors, however, may wish to direct scholarship funds specifically to “average” students, while others may not want to reward high achievements.

Academic Institution/Program
A variety of programs and institutions offer post-secondary educational opportunities for students. Donors may wish to consider colleges and universities, technical schools, community colleges, and/or business colleges. A requirement that a scholarship recipient be enrolled at an
accredited post-secondary institution or program provides greater flexibility during the selection process. The requirement also provides evidence of student intent.

Specific Institution
Sometimes a donor would like to limit the award to a particular college in order to honor it as well as the person(s) or organization for whom the scholarship is named. This is fine. The only thing you need to consider is that such a restriction will limit the pool of recipients.

Student Activities/Areas of Academic Interest
Some donors may be interested in granting scholarships to students who have been involved with high school athletics or who have excelled in a specific academic area. It is preferable to consider past interests and performance rather than future academic interests as students often modify their academic programs while they pursue their education. Restrictive criteria will limit the ability to select a scholarship recipient.

Financial Need
Some donors may be interested in granting scholarships to students who need financial support to further their education. The families of most students who plan to attend post-secondary institutions complete state and federal government financial need documents. The results of
these documents are referred to as “demonstrated need for financial aid.” Used as criteria,“demonstrated need for financial aid” is an objective guide for the Scholarship Selection Committee and is not overly restrictive.

Renewability of Scholarship
Donors wishing to support a renewable scholarship should consider the level of academic performance required to renew as well as the number of years the scholarship may be renewed. This can be communicated to scholarship applicants with a statement such as, “Scholarship recipients maintaining a “B” average in their post-secondary studies are invited to apply to have their scholarship renewed for the following academic year. A scholarship recipient may be awarded a scholarship for a maximum of four years, including renewals.”

Other qualifications
At times donors express a desire to specify student qualities, characteristics and achievements. Greater specificity may reduce the likelihood that a scholarship will actually be awarded.

Memorials Fund Scholarship

The Memorials Fund was established in October, 1996 as a way for families and friends to honor the memory of loved ones by supporting the educational goals of students who graduate from Superior High School. Gifts to the Memorials Fund become part of an endowment that will grow until scholarships can be provided from the proceeds of the fund.

The names of those memorialized with gifts of $100 or more will be engraved on brass plates and mounted on duplicate plaques located in the Performing Arts Center at Superior High School and in the Board of Education Building.

The Memorials Fund will exist in perpetuity. By recognizing their belief in education and their concern for youth, the names of those memorialized will be remembered forever.

Gifts of any amount are welcomed and appreciated. Checks may be made payable to the Superior Scholarship Foundation.

Funds

Scholarships are an excellent way to honor and aid, but they are not the only way of making a gift to youth and helping in the education of our children. As school budgets have fallen and costs increased, many programs have been cut and opportunities reduced or eliminated. A way to ameliorate this problem is through the creation of funds that specifically aid students or school activities affected by school cuts.

Type of Fund
As with scholarships, there are two basic types of funds: endowed and temporary. (See the section on Scholarships.) Once you have decided what you want to do (endowed or temporary), then you need to decide what specifically you want to do with the donation and determine
criteria for the awarding of funds, very much like you would do if you were creating a scholarship.

At the moment, the Foundation manages several funds. One, for example, the Jefferson Fund, was established to assist the Mock Trial program and, to a lesser degree, the Harvard Model U.N. program, as well as by specific bequeath third world travel.

It would be possible to create a fund to support any program or activity within the school district.

The Excellence Fund
Currently the Foundation has established this fund to provide money to assist students at all levels improve basic skills, to promote enrichment experiences, especially in music and art, and enhance activities which benefit education. This fund, it is hoped, will become large enough to generate an annual sum in excess of $25,000.

Thank you for your consideration. Fur further information please contact the school district at 394-8710 or any Foundation board member. Your interest in helping students and our schools is much appreciated.