2015-2016 Episcopal Colleges Scholarships Announced

Scholarship Increased to $10,000 – Application Deadline is February 16, 2015

[CUAC] The Rev. Canon James G. Callaway, D.D., General Secretary of the Colleges and Universities of the Anglican Communion (CUAC) and the Association of Episcopal Colleges (AEC) announces the 2015-16 Episcopal Colleges William Randolph Hearst Service Learning Scholarships sponsored by AEC. Up to two scholarships will be awarded to high school seniors graduating in 2014, and the amount of each scholarship has been increased to $10,000 ($2,500 per year over four years) per recipient. To qualify, applicants must be outstanding Episcopal students of an NAES-member high school, with a demonstrated emphasis on service-learning and community service; scholarship recipients must also matriculate at one of the seven American Episcopal Colleges:

  • Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, New York
  • Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Geneva, New York
  • Kenyon College, Gambier, Ohio
  • St. Augustine College, Chicago, Illinois
  • St. Augustine’s University, Raleigh, North Carolina
  • The University of the South, Sewanee, Tennessee
  • Voorhees College, Denmark, South Carolina

Background and Qualification Requirements

The Episcopal Church has a rich, vigorous tradition of educational institutions, with the Episcopal Colleges being complemented by nearly 1,200 Episcopal early childhood education programs, elementary, secondary, and comprehensive P–12 schools. The awards announced today were established in 1997 as the William Randolph Hearst Scholarships to emphasize learning through service supported by Episcopal schools and colleges, and seek to recognize students who have been active Episcopalians in their high school and/or home parish. Applicants must be able to demonstrate a strong record of service-learning and community service; academic achievement in their junior and senior years; outstanding leadership among their peers in school and in the community; and a commitment to worship and community life in their school and parish church.

These qualities will be confirmed by three required letters of recommendation: from the head of the Episcopal high school she or he attends; from a faculty member who has taught the applicant or from the school chaplain; and from the Rector of the applicant’s home parish. Other requirements and instructions detailing the application process are listed on the application form, available for download on the CUAC website. There is a submission deadline of February 16, 2015 for studies beginning in September 2015; notification of the awards will be made in the latter part of March.

Selection and Award Process

Applications will be reviewed, and the scholarship recipient(s) chosen, by a committee comprising Episcopal clergy and laity, appointed by the AEC. The General Secretary of CUAC–AEC will inform each recipient of the scholarship award and inform the school. However, qualification for the scholarship is not complete until the recipient is accepted into and matriculates at the Episcopal College listed in her or his application. Upon matriculation, a scholarship award will be prepared by the CUAC–AEC office and made payable to the Episcopal college for tuition or residence fees. In order to receive the scholarship in subsequent years, the college will be asked to send a letter each year notifying CUAC-AEC that the student remains enrolled, has made satisfactory academic progress, and is in good standing.

Sponsoring Organizations

Colleges and Universities of the Anglican Communion (CUAC) is a network of the Anglican Communion that seeks to support the mission and identity of some 130 Anglican-affiliated institutions of higher learning around the globe. By encouraging exchanges of faculty, students, and ideas, and promoting opportunities for learning and fellowship—particularly the Triennial Conference, hosted by members in each global region on a rotating basis—CUAC helps its members see how their common Anglican identity and ethos is lived out within the various cultures in which it has taken root. In 2012 CUAC also launched the Dr Rowan Williams Annual CUAC Lecture, which each year selects an Anglican luminary to address issues concerning religion, society, and higher education in the context of Anglican thought and praxis.

The Association of Episcopal Colleges (AEC) is a consortium of colleges with historic and present ties to the Episcopal Church. Founded in 1962 and with headquarters in the Episcopal Church Center in New York, the Association is committed to supporting academic excellence and linking faith and values with learning and service.  Diverse in curricula and constituency but united by common mission, the Episcopal Colleges represent some of the finest of the Church’s work within the world.  Many are traditional liberal arts colleges; two have historically served the African American community; one was chartered to serve Hispanic immigrants; one is dedicated to health care; and two are overseas, in Liberia and the Philippines.

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