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Allison's Gift Scholarship Program
Deadline to apply: February 3, 2025 4:00 pm CT (5:00 pm ET)

Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Inc. has established a scholarship program to assist students who plan to continue their education in college or vocational school programs.

The program is administered by Scholarship America®, the nation’s largest designer and manager of scholarships and other education support programs for corporations, foundations, associations, and individuals. Eligibility for individual programs is determined at the sole discretion of the sponsor and eligible applications are reviewed by Scholarship America’s evaluation team.

Click here to return to the Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties Scholarship Programs Main Page

Applicants to the Allison’s Gift Scholarship Program must:

    • Be high school seniors or graduates, GED holders, or current college undergraduates who have placed a child for adoption
    • Preference to birthmothers who are residents of Florida
    • Preference to birthmothers who have placed their child/children with parents who reside in Florida
    • Plan to enroll in full-time or part-time undergraduate study at an accredited two-year or four-year college, university, or vocational-technical school for the entire upcoming academic year
      • Part-time enrollment consists of a minimum of 6 credits per term/semester
      • Certification programs must be through an accredited institution and must run on a standard academic semester calendar. Certification programs must be a minimum of one semester/term in length, and applicants must be enrolled at the time awards are disbursed
    • Minimum 2.0 GPA
    • Children of Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties employees are not eligible for these awards

Awards

If selected as a recipient, the student will receive a $5,000 award. Up to 2 awards will be granted.

Awards are renewable up to three additional years or until a bachelor’s degree is earned, whichever occurs first. Renewal is contingent upon satisfactory academic performance (maintaining a cumulative grade point average of 2.0 on a 4.0 scale) in a full-time or part-time course of study and continuation of the program by Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Inc.

Awards are for undergraduate study only.

Applicants may receive ONE award from this sponsor.

Students who plan to earn a bachelor’s degree in fewer than four years may petition in writing prior to their last year of enrollment for acceleration of award payments.

The scholarship is to be used for tuition and education-related expenses. Unused funds must be returned.

Notification

All applicants will be notified in June.

Payment of Scholarships

Scholarship America processes scholarship payments on behalf of Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Inc.

Payment is made in July.

Selection of Recipients

Scholarship recipients are selected based on:

  • Academic performance
  • Demonstrated leadership
  • Participation in school and community activities
  • Work experience
  • A statement of educational and career goals and objectives
  • Unusual personal or family circumstances
  • An online recommendation completed by someone who guided the student through their adoption journey (cannot be a family member)

Financial need, as calculated by Scholarship America, must be demonstrated for the student to receive an award.

Selection of recipients is made by Scholarship America. In no instance does any officer or employee of Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Inc. play a part in the selection. Not all applicants to the program will be selected as recipients. Students may reapply to the program each year they meet eligibility requirements. All applicants agree to accept the decision as final.

As part of your application, you must upload the following:

  • A current, complete transcript of grades. Grade reports are not accepted. Transcripts must display:
    • Student name
    • School name
    • Grades
    • Credit hours for each course and term in which each course was taken.

NOTE: If you are providing SAT or ACT test scores, and those scores are not listed on your high school transcript, you will need to upload a copy of your test score report(s) separately. If you are uploading a college transcript, those scores are not required.

One online recommendation form must be submitted on your behalf no later than February 6, 2025 5:00 pm Eastern Time.*

*Please choose a recommender who guided you through your adoption journey. The recommender CANNOT be a family member.

Your application is not complete unless all required materials are submitted electronically.

Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Inc. has partnered with Scholarship America. Selecting the button below will redirect you to the Scholarship America Student Hub!

Please make sure to add studentsupport@scholarshipamerica.org as well as the program email address provided below in the footer as safe senders in your email contact list.