Making successful education a reality to many students means providing financial support and Cal Coast Cares Foundation has developed a scholarship and grant program for just that.
Last year, Steele Canyon Cougar Karsyn Swift and West Hills Wolfpacker Sharayah Moore were both awarded $1,000 scholarships for their collegiate pursuits.
Moore said the scholarship was pivotal in her decision to attend Azusa Pacific University this year.
Making successful education a reality to many students means providing financial support and Cal Coast Cares Foundation has developed a scholarship and grant program for just that.
Last year, Steele Canyon Cougar Karsyn Swift and West Hills Wolfpacker Sharayah Moore were both awarded $1,000 scholarships for their collegiate pursuits.
Moore said the scholarship was pivotal in her decision to attend Azusa Pacific University this year.
“For me, the scholarship was very helpful,” she said. “I pay for my college tuition myself, so just any amount of money toward my tuition was a very big blessing to me. With the help of Cal Coast, I was able to make it to school this year.”
Swift and Moore both submitted personal essays, along with a transcript and a letter of recommendation, to qualify for the scholarship. Moore said she would encourage other young people to be open about their experiences and make the most of scholarship opportunities like these.
“My essay was about how I grew up in a single parent household and how i wanted to major in biochemistry and go into forensics,” she said. “Be open and honest about your situation when you’re applying for scholarships, and don’t be afraid to speak about your life events and what has shaped you into the person you have become today.”
In addition to the scholarship awards, grants were awarded to educators in East County for various project.
Santee Elementary instructors Joseph Kearney, fourth and fifth grade, Betty Grable, sixth grade, and Molly Maloy, fifth grade, were both recipients of grant funds. Grable was awarded a $1,930 grant for her project with Sphero SPRK robots and Maloy received a $954 grant for Breakout EDU kits. Kearney was given a $1,300 grant. He plans to develop kits to teach coding and robotics.
The Cal Coast Cares Foundation awards approximately $60,000 in grants and scholarships, in total, each year: $35,000 in scholarships this year for college-bound high school seniors and current or former foster students in San Diego or Riverside counties, and $12,000 in grants to local educators for classroom-based projects. The remaining balance in scholarships goes to local community college students.
Moore, who is about to finish her first year at university, said she is grateful she heard about the scholarship.
“For me personally, it really helped me out,” she said.
The deadline to apply for the current round of scholarships is March 31, 2018.
The deadline to apply for the current round of teacher grants is June 30, 2018.
