Annual Foundation Scholarships Awarded
The Medford Rogue Rotary Foundation has existed for 40+ years, and for the past 26 years, Oregon Community Foundation (OCF) has managed that fund for us. Matthew Goldfeder, Senior Program Officer, Scholarships and Postsecondary Education with OCF provided some updates.
Four of our traditional grant recipients who have just graduated from some of the area’s high schools attended with many others not able to attend today.
Kaitlyn Ames, Phoenix High School
Daemian Deen, Crater High School
Osmund Dunn, South Medford High School
Sailor Endicott, North Medford High School
Chloe Leavens, South Medford High School
Luis Ortiz, Phoenix High School
Reyna Pillajo Kern, Phoenix High School
Avery Zahniser, South Medford High School
Past recipients shared their experiences and the impact of the scholarships: Guillermina Hernandez, who now works for OCF, and Anna Cuccarese. Anna is a single mother, currently working with children with developmental disabilities. She is also a student at Rogue Community College, studying for degrees in Family Support Services and Early Childhood Education.
Anna is part of our newer non-traditional scholarship program. She is in our third group of scholarship recipients … 8 students so far with more to be added this summer. These students are folks who didn’t have the opportunity to continue their studies immediately after graduating from high school. They began their lives, entering the workforce and starting families, without the benefit of post-secondary education. But now, after years, they are ready to realize their potential, upskill in their current career, or begin a new one, understanding that additional education is their path to a better life.
One challenge is that, for this group of students, financial help, generally in the form of scholarships and grants, are far more difficult to access than it is for graduating high school students. These non-traditional students are trying to somehow fit their classes in around their mostly full-time work and family responsibilities. Several years ago, with the help of Heidi Binder and the good folks at the Oregon Community Foundation, as well as the awesome staff at the RCC Foundation, we developed this non-traditional program to help address that issue.
Foundation Background:
The MRRF began awarding scholarships in 1983 .. with 4 students each receiving $500 for their first year of post-secondary education. Our MRRF has been awarding scholarships for 43 consecutive years
Over that 43 year period, we have awarded over $3 million to 494 individual students
For this upcoming academic year, we will be awarding scholarships totaling $175,000 (incl. an estimated $21K @ Hillsdale)
With our 11 new recipients (plus the three students attending Hillsdale) the MRR Foundation’s scholarship program will be supporting a total of 43 students during this upcoming academic year
The MRRF scholarship fund assets (now totaling nearly $4 million) are administered by the Oregon Community Foundation (OCF), in conjunction with the Oregon Office of Student Access and Completion (OSAC). The MRRF assets are comprised of 16 individual sub-funds. Each sub-fund was initially created using the proceeds from Rotary Club fundraisers (General Fund, Performing Arts & Promise) or resulting from contributions made by an individual Rotary Club Member. Each sub-fund is permanently endowed and capable of supporting one or more annual scholarship awards each representing a minimum of $2,000/yr . in financial assistance.
The annual Medford Rogue Rotary Foundation scholarships are awarded to students who are graduating from any high school in Jackson County. Qualified students can apply for
a scholarship using an online application process which is administered by OSAC. Successful students are selected by the trustees of the Medford Rogue Rotary Foundation from a screened list provided by OSAC.