The Ron Brown Scholar Program — named to honor the former U.S. Secretary of Commerce who died in a plane crash in 1996 — awards high school seniors who are selected $10,000 a year for four years at the college or university of their choice. (Students who have graduated from high school and begun their college educations are not eligible.) The program — which has a stated commitment to “accelerate the progress of African Americans into the mainstream of leadership in business, education, government and a wide spectrum of professions, while instilling a strong dedication to leadership and public service — is highly selective. Last year only a dozen students were awarded scholarships out of more than 10,000 applicants. But the scholarship program’s website frequently notes that “Applicants to the Program, in addition to displaying academic excellence and a capacity to lead, must also demonstrate a commitment to service and community involvement.” That facet of selection criteria may be of particular interest to rising high school seniors planning to matriculate at the SAES at the start of the 2010-11 academic year. Skim through the bios of recipients and you’ll notice that backgrounds in 4-H helped several of the Brown Scholars get a leg up on other high-achieving high school students who applied.
The Ron Brown Scholar Program has two application deadlines. Applications received by Nov. 1 will be evaluated for the Brown Scholar Program and also forwarded along to other scholarship programs that seem appropriate. Applications received between Nov. 1 and Jan. 9, the second application deadline, will be evaluated for the Brown Scholar Program alone.
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