DCF scholarship applications due March 15

Delaware Community Foundation 2021-22 scholarship applications are due by Monday, March 15.

Students can apply for dozens of DCF scholarships by completing a single online application, available at delcf.org/scholarships.

Each year, the DCF awards scholarships to students from funds established by generous people who care about education and understand that it can be costly.

This past year, the DCF awarded $306,800 to 165 students throughout the state. There is no cap on the number of scholarships or the amount students may receive. Funding from many of the scholarships may be applied to costs for textbooks and fees, in addition to tuition. Some are one-time awards, and others are renewable.

“Each scholarship offered by our generous fundholders has a story behind it, whether it be to honor a loved one, or reward a specific academic or community effort,” said Stuart Comstock-Gay, DCF president and CEO. “Our goal is to connect those stories to deserving students, and help philanthropists support and invest in students’ future.”

Fredy Hernandez-Mejia, a Sussex Central High School graduate, is one recent recipient. The fifth of six children raised by a single mother who could not read or write in English or Spanish, Hernandez-Mejia gained hope when he was awarded the Don & Nancy Edwards Scholarship.

Hoping to be the first in his family to earn a bachelor’s degree, Hernandez-Mejia’s scholarship has helped ease the financial burden and make that goal more achievable. He is currently studying at Delaware Technical Community College and plans to transfer to University of Delaware to study civil engineering. His goal is to stay in Delaware and work with the civil engineers at the Delaware Department of Transportation, where he has already interned. “Like my mother always says, ‘paso por paso,’ which means step-by-step,” he said.