In its fifth year, TopLine Credit Union Foundation has awarded $12,000 in scholarship money to twelve TopLine members who are continuing their education. Additionally, the foundation awarded $1,500 in scholarship funds to support post-secondary educational needs and goals of students in Nigeria through partnership with Africa Education and Health Initiative (AFEDHI), a local non-profit organization with a vision to assist African students with access to education, books and school supplies.
Any TopLine member planning to pursue or continue post-secondary education by attending a college or university, graduate school, or a 2-to-4 year community, vocational or technical college in the fall of 2019 was eligible. All eligible schools must be accredited by the U.S. Department of Education. The scholarship awards included twelve $1,000 scholarships.
Scholarship applicants needed to complete a one-page application form and submit an essay (500 words or less) that answered the question: “If you had the authority to change your community in a positive way, what specific change(s) would you make and how could TopLine support you in that initiative?”
“We are once again delighted to assist TopLine members and AFEDHI students with the costs of higher education,” said Vicki Roscoe Erickson, President, TopLine Credit Union Foundation. “The essays provided so many valuable ideas on how TopLine could help support positive change in our communities. Some of these included: youth collaboration with seniors on learning how to use mobile devices to help combat financial scams, making summer camps (drama, music, sports, etc.) more affordable for youth to increase participation and build confidence, providing afterschool money basics classes to help youth understand principles such as budgeting and how credit works to better prepare students for the world outside the classroom, volunteering for adult/youth reading programs to teach kids reading and social skills, just to name a few. We will be using the essay responses to determine how we can better partner within our local communities.”
As one of our scholarship recipients commented, “Currently, in our community, there are people suffering the consequences of bad financial decisions made without the financial knowledge or the skills to make informed choices. Payday loans, debt consolidation scams, and loans with astronomical interest rates immediately spring to mind. Without early financial education, young people are especially vulnerable to exploitation.”
TopLine Credit Union Foundation, guided by its mission of “working within the community to build a better tomorrow,” will continue to support the cooperative spirit of “people helping people” by living the mantra — to care, connect and contribute in the communities they serve.
The foundation received a total of 146 applications. Scholarship recipients will be recognized with a reception at the credit union, on TopLine Credit Union Foundation’s website page at https://www.toplinecu.com/
Since inception in 2015, TopLine Credit Union Foundation has given out $53,500 in scholarships monies to assist with the affordability of post-secondary education.