Rotary scholarships available for local students in advanced post-secondary studies

 Submitted by Cranbrook Sunrise Rotary Club

It may be the dog days of a very hot summer, but fall isn’t far away and the need for local post-secondary students to think about scholarships available for the next school year. 

One of the most unique scholarships available is sponsored by the Cranbrook Sunrise Rotary Club and it’s only available for students already enrolled in post-secondary studies and needing funds to continue their education.

Applications are due Sept. 1, 2014 with four scholarships available from $1,000 to $1,500 each. Students interested in applying can find an application package on the Cranbrook Sunrise Rotary webpage at: http://portal.clubrunner.ca/926 or they can get more information by phoning club member Alex McLeod at (250) 489-5254.

“We’ve only had a few applications so far, but once we reach August they usually start to pour in so anyone interested in applying should be getting an application in to us soon,” McLeod say6s.

Completed applications can be sent by letter post to: Scholarship Committee, Rotary Club of Cranbrook, Box 765, Cranbrook, B.C., V1C 4J5 or they can be emailed to: alex@silenus.ca  and processed from there. The club usually receives around 40 applications for the scholarships each year.

At least one of the scholarships is awarded to an arts or performing arts student and the recipients must be enrolled in the third, fourth or fifth year of an undergraduate program in a recognized post-secondary institution. Recipients must have graduated from Mt. Baker Secondary School or a Cranbrook area private or home school.

Criteria for the scholarships is equally weighed on academic merit, financial need and community service. Applicants must submit marks from their most recent two years of post-secondary education.

Sunrise Rotary has offered the unique scholarship program since 1998 and it’s aimed at students in the latter part of their post-secondary studies for a reason, says McLeod.

“Most scholarships are offered to students entering university for the first time or early in their post-secondary studies. Our program recognizes that students need money for every year of their studies and funds can be harder to get in their later study years,” he says.

Funding for the scholarships comes from Sunrise Rotary’s highly popular Rockies Film Festival which runs every spring and was almost completely sold out this year. “We are very thankful for the support the community shows for the film festival as it allows us to continue to fund these important programs,” McLeod says.

He adds it’s a challenge to get the information out to potential college applicants as not all Cranbrook post-secondary students return to town every summer. “We are hoping that people will assist in getting the word out to any students who qualify and would benefit from the scholarships.”