Scholarships are a great way to give back to the community and support future generations in Carbon County!
The Carbon County Community Foundation hosts more than a dozen scholarship funds that have been established by community members and area business leaders for the benefit of local students. Last year, those funds granted more than $30,000 in scholarships to Carbon County students pursuing higher education opportunities.
Scholarship Funds are generally the most popular type held at a Community Foundation. Scholarships can promote a certain career or industry, acknowledge a special school or community, and/or honor the memory of loved ones. As the fundholder, you decide the guidelines and criteria for the scholarship (like school, particular field, class, etc.), and we handle the rest! You can be involved in the selection process as much or as little as you’d like.
Learn more about existing scholarship funds at the Community Foundation.
How Do I Establish a Scholarship Fund at the Carbon County Community Foundation?
1. Think about why you want to establish the scholarship and the attributes of the perfect student recipient. Do you want to honor a loved one’s memory? Do you want to promote a certain career or field of study? Do you want to make the scholarship available to all students or limit it to specific school districts? Check out our Scholarship Eligibility & Criteria Checklist for more inspiration.
2. Contact us to discuss your scholarship. We will work with you to narrow down the scholarship guidelines and create a Scholarship Fund agreement.
3. Make a gift to establish your scholarship fund and receive a tax deduction for this calendar year. Accepted gift types include cash, check or credit, appreciated stock, and non-cash assets like real estate holdings. If you are age 70 1/2 or older, you can make a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) from your IRA to the Community Foundation to establish the scholarship fund. Once your Scholarship Fund is established, it will have a dedicated page on our website, and anyone can donate to the fund at any time.
4. Start awarding scholarships immediately or grow the endowment for future generations!
Scholarships: Things to Remember
- The minimum scholarship award amount is $500.
- The minimum Scholarship Fund balance is $2,500, which can be achieved over up to three (3) years. We ask that you maintain that balance in the fund, and we will work with you to grow the endowment balance over time.
- The administrative fee for a Scholarship Fund is 2% annually (assessed quarterly).
- Scholarship recipients are selected by a committee of volunteers, typically made up of Foundation staff and board members, school district faculty, and other community members. Fundholders can participate in the selection. Committee members must sign a conflict of interest statement.
- Scholarships must be paid out to the institution the student will be attending; we can not pay a scholarship directly to a student.
Ready to Get Started?
Contact us at 610-730-2526 (call or text) or director@cccfoundpa.org to start the process of setting up your new Scholarship Fund. Or you can schedule an appointment online for an in-person or virtual meeting.
Applications for scholarships that will be awarded to students graduating in Spring, 2025, will open soon!