Fulfill Your College Goals
Note: The deadline for submitting scholarship applications is Friday, May 15, 2009. Don't miss out on these opportunities!
Unions help working families fulfill their dreams in many different ways. At NAGE, this includes three different scholarship opportunities awarded each year, plus five different scholarship programs offered by SEIU.
NAGE Scholarship Opportunities
Scholarship applications for the 2009-2010 academic year are now available. Scholarships will be awarded without regard to the sex, race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, age, or disability of any applicant.
Deadline: All applications must be postmarked by Friday, May 15, 2009. Scholarship recipients will be announced on this web site on Monday, June 8, 2009.
- The $1,000 Edward G. Gillooly Journalism Scholarship honors the late Ed Gillooly who was devoted to honoring working people through journalism. One scholarship is awarded annually.
- The $1,000 Marc Lawson Criminal Justice Scholarship honors longtime IBPO member Marc Lawson for his lifelong service to the American public through law enforcement. One scholarship is awarded annually.
- The NAGE Scholarships program awards 50 scholarships in the amount of $500 each. Scholarships are chosen in a random drawing from among all applications received.
SEIU Scholarship Opportunities
Through five different scholarship programs, SEIU awards 52 scholarships that enable SEIU members and their children to pursue their educational goals at accredited colleges, universities, and technical schools.
SEIU's scholarships are open to SEIU members (including NAGE) or their children. The John Geagan Scholarship is also open to local union staff. Membership must be for three continuous years as of September 1, 2009. All awards must be for the academic year(s) awarded.
Scholarships will be awarded without regard to the sex, race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, age, or disability of any applicant. Scholarship awards are limited to one per household.
Applications must be filed online by midnight March 2, 2009 or postmarked March 2, 2009.
- SEIU's scholarships are open to SEIU members or their children.
- The John Geagan Scholarship is open to local union staff.
- Membership must be for three continuous years as of September 1, 2009.
- All awards must be for the academic year(s) awarded.
- Graduate students are not eligible.
- Scholarship awards are limited to one per household.
SEIU Lottery Scholarship Program (Access Key: SEIU)
The SEIU Scholarship Program offers 48 $1,000 and $1,500 scholarships. All applicants must read Changing Workers' Lives, SEIU 2007 Annual Report and then correctly answer all the questions on the SEIU Scholarship Program application form in order to qualify for a lottery drawing selection process.
SEIU Moe Foner Scholarship Program For Visual and Performing Arts(Access Key: SEIMF)
SEIU is proud to offer a scholarship that continues the life work of the late Moe Foner, the founder of the SEIU 1199 Bread and Roses Cultural Project. Foner used his energy and imagination to tap into New York's thriving artistic community and brought new resonance to union concerts, exhibits, and publications. The $5,000 scholarship is awarded annually to SEIU members and their children who are pursuing a degree or full-time training in the visual or performing arts.
SEIU Jesse Jackson Scholarship Program (Access Key: SEIJJ)
The $5,000 SEIU Jesse Jackson scholarship is awarded to a student whose work and aspirations for economic and social justice reflect the values and accomplishments of the Rev. Jesse Jackson.
John Geagan Scholarships(Access Key: SEIJG)
The John Geagan scholarship is open to members, their children or local union staff who want to pursue a degree in labor studies. The scholarship is for $5,000 each to be expended over a 24-month period.
SEIU Nora Piore Scholarship ProgramThe Nora Piore Scholarship is offered to those SEIU members and their children who wish to pursue a career in the health care field. It is a $4,375 scholarship renewable for up to four years. This scholarship will re-open in 2010 - 2011.
Union Plus Scholarship Program
The Union Plus Scholarship offers $150,000 in scholarships annually to members, their spouses and dependents. Students who are beginning or continuing their secondary education are eligible. Awards are based on academic achievement, character, leadership, social awareness, career goals and financial need.
Since 1992, the Union Plus Scholarship Program has awarded more than $2.4 million to students of working families who want to begin or continue their secondary education. The Union Plus Scholarship Program is offered through the Union Plus Education Foundation.
How to apply:
The 2009 scholarship application is available for download.
- Download the PDF form here.
- Download this PDF to type your answers in the PDF (large file size/longer download time) here.
*Please note: If you are using the free Acrobat reader, you must print the form after you fill it out because you will not be able to save your information.
Deadline: All applications must be postmarked by January 31, 2009.
Eligibility for Scholarships: Current and retired members of unions participating in any Union Plus program, their spouses and their dependent children (including foster children, step children, and any other child for whom the individual member provides greater than 50% of his or her support) can apply for a Union Plus Scholarship. (Participating union members from the U.S., Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands and Canada are eligible.) Members do not have to purchase any Union Plus program product or participate in any Union Plus programs to apply for the scholarships and scholarship awards are not based upon participation in a Union Plus program.
The individual must be accepted into an accredited college or university, community college or recognized technical or trade school at the time the award is issued. Note: Graduate students are now eligible.
Evaluation criteria:The scholarship program is open to students attending or planning to attend a college or university, a community college, or a technical college or trade school. Applicants for scholarships are evaluated according to academic ability, social awareness, financial need and appreciation of labor.
Scholarship applications are judged by a committee of impartial post secondary educators. Applications are first reviewed by a panel of independent career professionals. Semi-finalists are chosen based on a point scale, and their applications are then provided to judges for further review and selection of finalists and awards. Program judges include representatives from the American Association of Community Colleges, the United Negro College Fund, the American Association of State Colleges and Universities and the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.
Scholarship award amounts: The amount of the award ranges from $500 - $4,000. This is a one-time cash award sent to individual winners for study beginning in the fall of the same year.
