Students can view scholarships on Foundation’s new website

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Students can view scholarships on Foundation’s new website

St. Marys, PA: The new Elk County Community Foundation website now offers the opportunity for high school seniors and non-traditional students to view a comprehensive list of all scholarships available through the Foundation. The website at www.elkcountyfoundation.org features a comprehensive Information for Students section that lists the many scholarships available. This serves as a valuable tool that allows students and their parents to search for scholarships that can help them with their post-secondary or vocational education expenses.

The website listings include details on amounts, deadlines, eligibility, categories, and how to apply. Scholarships listings are divided by high schools, with additional sections featuring scholarships for vocational and non-traditional students.

The scholarship section also features a Q & A area that addresses most frequently asked questions. Now is the time for students to start exploring what opportunities may be available to them, as the deadline for many of the high school senior applications is mid-March.

A total of 99 scholarships are featured on the website, with seven new scholarships added just this year. New scholarships this year for Elk County include the Arlan J Clayton and Dale Horowicz Clayton Scholarship, St. Marys American Legion Scholarship, St. Marys Sons of the American Legion Post 103 Scholarship, Dr. Maurus Sorg Memorial Scholarship, Donald Cicuzza Jr Memorial Scholarship, The Fitch Family Scholarship, and the Jack Kestler Memorial Scholarship.

The Foundation’s scholarship team has distributed all post-secondary and vocational scholarship applications to high school guidance departments throughout Elk, Cameron, McKean, Clearfield and other outlying counties. They encourage high school students and their parents to review the scholarships on the website and then contact their guidance department to apply for those that interest them. Non-traditional students should download applications and follow instructions as directed on the website.

Over 1.6 million in scholarships have been awarded by the Foundation since 2000. As an added bonus due to the Foundation’s partnership with PATH (Partners for Access to Higher Education), students who receive a scholarship through the Foundation may qualify for matching dollars through PHEAA and the PATH program. In the 2017-2018 school year over $71,000 was matched to 67 local students.

Visit the Foundation’s website at www.elkcountyfoundation.org to learn more about scholarship opportunities for area students. These scholarships are made possible by the generosity of community-minded individuals who believe in the power of education. The Elk County Community Foundation, an affiliate of the Community Foundation of the Northern Alleghenies, provides donors with a simple but powerful and highly personal approach to achieving their philanthropic goals while enhancing the quality of life for the people of Elk County. For further details, contact the Foundation at 834-2125.

Scholarships for adult learners, college students

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Scholarships for adult learners, college students

St. Marys, PA: News flash! Not all scholarships are targeted for graduating high school seniors! The Elk County Community Foundation (ECCF) offers a number of scholarships for adults, current college students, and graduate level students who are pursuing an education.

These non-high school students log into the new ECCF website at www.elkcountyfoundation.org to learn about all the scholarships that are available to them. The new Information for Students section features easy-to-navigate buttons that take you to the scholarships that are appropriate for each type of student. It also includes a Q & A section to answer the most frequently asked questions. Adult learner scholarship applications can be downloaded from the website, filled out, and returned to the Foundation for review. Deadline dates for each application are indicated on the website, many of which must be returned by April 1st.

Scholarships are available for those seeking an education in general, technical, vocational, and specialized fields of study. Current scholarships available are: Inez Bull Piano Scholarship, Ole Bull Violin Scholarship, Michele Campbell Memorial Nursing Scholarship, David L. Delullo Memorial Scholarship, Hasselman/Hopton Memorial Scholarship, Seth T. Hockman Memorial Scholarship, Leroy C. Krise Memorial Scholarship, Dr. Sandra Calkins Kowalski Nursing, Ella McElhany & Maude B. Schimmelfeng Scholarship, Richard Miller Memorial Scholarship, Ruth E. Reed Nursing Scholarship, Greiner/Roof Law Scholarship, Dr. Maurus Sorg Memorial Scholarship, and the Joseph A. Williams Medical Scholarship.

The Dr. Maurus Sorg Memorial Scholarship was established this year to honor his lifetime of service to his patients and his community. This scholarship is available to both adult learners and graduating seniors.

As an added bonus due to ECCF’s partnership with PATH (Partners for Access to Higher Education), some students who receive a scholarship through the Foundation may qualify for matching dollars through PHEAA and the PATH program. In the 2017-2018 school year over $71,000 was matched to 67 local students.

Visit the ECCF website at www.elkcountyfoundation.org for more details on the various scholarship opportunities that exist for both high school and non-traditional students. Many of the scholarships honor or memorialize individuals who have touched the lives of our Elk County residents. The Elk County Community Foundation provides donors with a simple but powerful and highly personal approach to achieving their philanthropic goals while enhancing the quality of life for the people of Elk County. For further details, contact the Foundation at 834-2125.

 

Cameron County Area Scholarship Applications Are Now Available

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Cameron County Area Scholarship Applications Are Now Available

Attention All Seniors in High School! The Community Foundation of the Northern Alleghenies has distributed all post-secondary or vocational school scholarship applications to the high school guidance departments. Each scholarship that is available has a different focus, so check each one out and see if it is right for you. The Foundation added thirteen new high school scholarships this year, this has increased the total scholarships awarded to $190,000 by the Foundation across seven counties.

The Blair Hornung Scholarship and the Gladys Schultz Memorial Scholarship  are open to any Cameron County Area High School senior who will be attending a post-secondary school. Also available for high school seniors is the Inez Bull Piano and Ole Bull Violin Scholarships.

 

Post-secondary music students are also eligible to apply for the Inez Bull Piano or the Ole Bull Violin Scholarships as long as they graduated from a high school in Potter, Tioga, Elk, McKean, Cameron or Clinton County.

The Community Foundation is one of 40 state wide partners with PATH (Partners for Access to Higher Education). Students who receive a scholarship award from the Community Foundation may qualify for matching dollars through PHEAA and the PATH program. In 2018 over $70,000 was matched to our local students.

All the scholarships and their qualifications for the Community Foundation of the Northern Alleghenies are listed on the Community Foundation website at www.elkcountyfoundation.org. Look for the “Information for Students” tab under Scholarship! For further details or deadlines, contact your guidance counselor or the Community Foundation at 844 238-2289.

Pictured is the winner of the Inez Bull Piano Scholarship Simon Glatt and Deanna Young from the Inez and Ole Bull Scholarship committee.

EITC $2,500 donation presented to Elk County Community Foundation

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Farmers National Bank presents EITC donation to Elk County Community Foundation

Recently, Farmers National Bank presented a check for $2500 to the Elk County Community Foundation (ECCF) from their Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program (EITC) approved donations. These dollars will be used to provide local school districts or agencies that serves Elk County School students K-12 with pre-approved innovative educational programs for the upcoming 2019 grants.

Any entity authorized to conduct business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and subject to certain taxes is eligible to apply to be involved with the EITC program. Tax credits are limited to 75% of the business’ contribution with a maximum of $750,000 annually. If a business agrees to make the same contribution for two consecutive years, it may receive a tax credit equal to 90% of its contribution.  Interested participants must submit a brief application to the DCED. More information about applying can be found at https://dced.pa.gov/programs/educational-improvement-tax-credit-program-eitc. 

As an approved EITC partner the Foundation receives donations from qualified businesses to provide innovative educational programing with in the public schools K-12.  Paula Fritz Eddy, on left, Tom Jesberger, on the right and Fritz lecker to the left of Aiello all from the Community Foundation accepted the check from Barb Donahue, Branch Manager of the St. Marys Branch of Farmers National Bank.  For more information about the Community Foundation or EITC opportunities contact Paula at 814-834-2125 or visit their website at www.elkcountyfoundation.org .

Pictured left to right: Paula Fritz Eddy, Barb Donahue, Fritz Lecker, and Tom Jesberger

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Foundation Charter Members Honored With Emeritus Status

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Conrad & Meyer honored by the Elk County Community Foundation

At the November Board of Directors meeting of the Elk County Community Foundation Attorney Jake Meyer and Dr. Bill Conrad, retiring Stackpole-Hall Foundation Executive Director, were awarded Emeritus Status in recognition of their visionary leadership in the establishment and growth of the Foundation.

More than 20 years ago, Jake and Bill discussed the possibility of establishing a community foundation in Elk County. They were aware of successful area individuals who could be philanthropists while at the same time Stackpole Hall Foundation was being inundated with requests from community non-profits.

Jake and Bill were joined by Stackpole Hall Board Members Doug Dobson and Ham Johnson and other community leaders to lay the foundation for a Community Foundation.  A Steering Committee was formed which included geographic representatives, influential leaders, legal and financial experts, civic leaders, entrepreneurs, and people who knew the community well.

On March 1, 1999, Attorney Richard A. Masson, the Community Foundation’s first chairman, led the initial Steering Committee meeting and charged the group to move forward with a feasibility study by forming three committees:

Attorney Jake Meyer was charged with examining the organizational legal structure, how a Board might be elected and how the Foundation might be administered leading his committee of Ham Johnson, Judith Manno Stager and 5 others.

Doug Dobson chaired his committee of Don Valone, Bud Brazinski, Dick Wolfe and 7 others to analyze the feasibility of creating a $5MM foundation in the next 5 to 10 years.

Bill Conrad and his committee investigated whether or not Elk County should affiliate with an existing community foundation and whether to include other contiguous counties.   His committee consisted of Don Fleming, John Fernan, Bea Terbovich and Sam Guaglianone.

Soon, by-laws were written and legalities were in place under the diligence and expertise of Jake Meyer. The first Board of Directors was selected and the Elk County Community Foundation was established.

Doug Dobson’s group and the Board began to realize their goal with the Stackpole Hall Foundation contributing start up money to hire an executive director, rent an office and begin educating the community.

After evaluating the structure and pros and cons about the feasibility of joining another community foundation, the committee under Bill Conrad’s leadership and the Board eventually established the Elk County Community Foundation without limiting expansion.

Now, nearly 20 years later, with a new name and the Elk County Community Foundation under its umbrella, and managing more than $12MM, the two key Elk County Community Foundation founders Jake Meyer, Esq. and Bill Conrad PhD were recognized and both agreed to continue their involvement and share their wisdom with the Elk County Community Foundation as Emeritus Status.