Education

The 100 Black Men of Southern Illinois Scholarship was established to encourage students with marginal academic records to refine and develop their academic potential to their highest possible level of achievement.

100 BMA of Southern Illinois Scholarship Program

Scholarship Criteria for the 100 BMA of Southern Illinois Scholarship Fund

Purpose: The 100 BMA of Southern Illinois Scholarship Fund awards scholarships to college-bound high school seniors based on demonstrated academic achievement, financial need, and an express interest in pursuing a post secondary education.

Criteria: The students eligible for assistance must be graduating high school seniors who reside in Southern Illinois and intend to continue their education at a trade school, two-year, or four-year college or university. Consideration will be given to academic achievement, financial need, the student’s community service record, and the student’s participation and current membership in Pathway 2 Manhood (P2M) and/or Pathway 2 Womanhood (P2W). Students should submit a scholarship application on the form provided by the100 BMA of Southern Illinois Scholarship Fund.

Guidelines: Scholarships will be awarded on an annual basis and disbursed in equal payments in August and January. Students must have a minimum 3.0 to initially apply; but must continue to attend classes and maintain no lower than an overall 2.5 grade-point average (or equivalent C+ average).  In addition, student must maintain the minimum credits necessary for full time status per semester (12 credit hours, pursuant to Pell Grant regulations.)

Amount: Each scholarship awarded will be a minimum of $500 annually to be paid in two equal installments.  Official notification of scholarship awardees will be made available on May 1.

Deadline: The application deadline is April 1; after which applications will no longer be accepted. The 100 BMA of Southern Illinois Scholarship Fund uses the timestamp provided for on-line submittals; and the postmarked date to determine mailed entries.

Renewal Process: This four (4) year scholarship is renewable for a maximum of three (3) years. Students continuing their educational pursuit at an accredited trade school, two-year, or four-year college or university are eligible to re-apply. Students must provide renewal information, which includes: grades (maintain a minimum 2.5 GPA annually in order to renew scholarship), credit hours, and information leading to ongoing educational status by July 1. Official notification of scholarship renewals will be sent on July 15. [* GPA-refers to cumulative, not semester or quarter.]

[As a Note: Failure to provide aforementioned information, will lead to revocation of scholarship.]

Please submit applications by April 1 to:

The 100 BMA of Southern Illinois Scholarship Fund, 1624 Main St. – P.O. Box 1497 Alton, IL 62002 or Website: www.100bma.org.

6 Guidelines for Scholarship Criteria

  1. GPA. A strong and consistent *GPA… The 100 BMA scholarship requires at least a 3.0 to apply. The award amount is renewable and is paid out bi-annually (August/January).  Scholarship recipients must adhere to the requirements stipulated under the renewal process. These requirements will provide continuing source of motivation for students when school is challenging.
  2. Current Membership in P2M & P2W gives applicant priority…Pathway to Manhood & Womanhood Mission: To teach youth how to make better choices, provide guidance on setting and achieving goals, and demonstrate how to diffuse situations before they escalate to tragic consequences.
  3. Financial Need…The 100 BMA wants to help talented students who might not otherwise have the opportunity to attend college because of its growing costs. Requiring that the income of applicants’ families falls below a certain amount is easy to verify via tax documents, payroll stubs, and the like.
  4. Geographic Boundaries…Graduating high school seniors who reside in Southern Illinois.  Establishing this requirement will allow us to serve our targeted satellite location communities that our chapter serves.
  5. Student’s Community Service Record…Graduating high school seniors who demonstrate a strong commitment to improving the quality of life for people in their school, community and/or world at large through their community service.
  6. Focused Educational and Career Goal…This gives the scholarship committee an understanding of how the scholarship will help students pursue their goals. Students should write a unique composition which answers this essay question.