The unusual Memphis scholarships grants now offer eligible students funds for private education at either the elementary or secondary level. If your tired of the increasing illiteracy rates and decrease in the number of high school graduates, the officials of Memphis, Tennessee, are turning to a new way to offer educational incentives to excel in school.
This Memphis scholarship fund, known as the Memphis Opportunity Scholarship Trust, or MOST, is designed to help students make the most of their educational future. Through these Memphis scholarship grants, students receive tuition money to help defray the cost of private school educations. The Memphis opportunity scholarship are awarded without regard to race, gender, religion, or academic achievement.
The Memphis scholarship program was begun in 1998 by a group of private businessmen to provide scholarships for the disabled. Since that time, the fund has assisted more than 2,000 children to gain access to educational opportunities otherwise closed to them. This fund is matched, in part, by the Children’s Scholarship Fund, a nationwide organization dedicated to making tuition assistance money available to students throughout the United States.
How effective is this program? Most children who attend private schools under these Memphis scholarships regularly exceed the academic scores of their peers on standardized tests. Furthermore, both the parents and students reported greatly increased satisfaction with the education the children received as a result of these Memphis scholarship opportunities.
Currently, Memphis Opportunity Scholarship Trust applications are being accepted only for students in pre-K through grade 1. Older students may be considered for Memphis scholarship assistance only if they have some type of documented disability, and will be attending a school that specializes in assisting children with this disability.
More than 70 private and charter schools in the area cooperate with the Memphis Scholarship Fund to offer recipients this unique chance to overcome the obstacles presented through substandard public school education. Although the Memphis scholorship does cover up to three-fourths of the cost of these institutions, parents are required to pay the remainder of the cost out of pocket, which can still present a hardship for some.
Students who qualify for the Memphis scholarships may continue to receive the awards through their eighth grade of education. They may do so provided that their family continues to meet criteria for financial need. In addition, the family must pay the remaining tuition to the school without defaulting on the expense. On average, MOST scholarships cover approximately one-fourth of the cost of the tuition at a private university.
For those students who excel academically, high school MOST scholarships are also available. These scholarships, which help to defray the cost of tuition, are awarded on a competitive basis. Students who receive these Memphis Opportunity Scholarship Trust scholarships may receive up to $2,150 to help with private school tuition.
MOST Memphis scholarships offer young people an unusual chance to succeed and improve their educational prospects. Although this requires a significant commitment of time and money from the parents, most of those who enroll under the MOST scholarship program believe the financial sacrifice is worthwhile; the added benefits offered by a private school that excels academically will last for a lifetime.
