USA Funds Renews Support for Indiana Program That Cultivates Scholarships

More Indiana high-school students will realize their dreams of postsecondary education with the help of Indiana Dollars for Scholars and an operational support grant for the organization from USA Funds^®.

For the third-consecutive year, USA Funds in 2005 provided primary support for the Indiana regional office of Dollars for Scholars. Dollars for Scholars, a program of Scholarship America, is a national network of community scholarship foundations. Dollars for Scholars is the only national organization dedicating its charitable purpose solely to the creation and support of community-based scholarship programs.

Each Dollars for Scholars chapter is managed and led by a board of local citizens working to raise money from the community to support local students. The Indiana Dollars for Scholars program, chartered in 2002, includes 106 Dollars for Scholars chapters serving 231 Indiana communities. In 2004 Indiana Dollars for Scholars chapters raised $2 million dollars and assisted more than 2,700 Hoosier students

“The presence of a statewide organization and staff has a direct impact on chapter and ScholarShop development and growth, and thus the scholarship and educational-support opportunities provided to Indiana students,” says Nancy Frick, Indiana Dollars for Scholars executive director.

“We are grateful to USA Funds for recognizing the importance of uniting local citizens in encouraging local students to reach for and achieve their educational goals,” Frick says. “Dollars for Scholars communities connect young people with caring and supportive adults. These positive connections produce the high expectations and strong motivation that all students need to succeed in school and in life.”

USA Funds President and CEO Carl Dalstrom chairs the Indiana Dollars for Scholars board.

The common element in all Dollars for Scholars chapters is community-based fund raising for scholarships awarded to local students. Beyond these scholarships, a growing number of Indiana Dollars for Scholars chapters now offer a variety of academic-support programs connecting students and parents with resources in the community including mentoring and tutoring programs, help with finding financial aid, and assistance securing grants and loans.

Indiana Dollars for Scholars chapter established its first chapter in 1964. Since that time, the chapters have raised more than $35 million, with more than $21 million distributed to nearly 37,000 students.