Money for college

The board made this decision in part because of city residents’ need for immediate workforce development and higher education funds due to the recent economic downturn. The CCSP is working hard to ensure a robust fund to meet the needs of adults 25 and over in the next scholarship cycle. Applications for adults are due October 1 for the spring semester. By splitting contributions, the board will continue to honor the intentions of the City Council to build an endowment for the future well-being of city residents, while also addressing pressing needs in our community.

Charlottesville City Council established the Charlottesville Community Scholarship Program 10 years ago with an allocation from a budget surplus. In the ensuing 10 years, the CCSP board has more than doubled the funds put in its care by the city and has awarded scholarships to 53 city residents or employees. On Oct. 29, the CCSP will host the “Charlottesville’s Promise 2011″ Gala at the Paramount Theater to celebrate 10 years of helping our neighbors and to raise more funds to have an even bigger impact in our community. If you’d like to be a part of this celebration of fulfilling “Charlottesville’s Promise,” contact Lainie Rainwater at scholars@cvillescholarship.com.

The program is open to candidates young and old. Scholarships follow students through their undergraduate education, and amounts can be adjusted each year–an important fact given that many colleges front-load first-year financial aid to students.

Background

The Charlottesville Community Scholarship Program was established through a one-time grant from the Charlottesville City Council in 2001. The program’s board of directors raises additional funds to support the program, whose fund has a current value of more than $590,000 as of June 2011.

Today, the program operates as a partnership uniting:

• the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce
• the University of Virginia
• Piedmont Virginia Community College
• the Charlottesville City Schools
• the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation
• the Charlottesville PTO Council

Save the Date

The CCSP will be hosting a gala at the Paramount Theater on Oct. 29 to celebrate ten years of fulfilling the promise of higher education assistance made to Charlottesville’s residents and employees by City Council’s one-time grant to fund this exceptional scholarship program. For more information on the “Charlottesville’s Promise 2011″ gala and how you and your business can be a part of this exciting initiative, please contact Lainie Rainwater at scholars@cvillescholarship.com.

Why a fundraising gala? To share the best-kept secret in town, introducing the CCSP’s work on behalf of our citizens, and to celebrate 10 years of keeping the promise made by City Council to help our low- and moderate-income earners and learners.

CCSP welcomes all interest in participation, and is delighted to have the following leaders on the gala steering committee:

For more information and to find out how you and/or your business can become involved in carrying forward “Charlottesville’s Promise,” contact Lainie Rainwater at scholars@cvillescholarship.com or click here. You can also find out more about CCSP by “liking” us on Facebook or following us on Twitter (CvilleCSP).

The Charlottesville Community Scholarship Program is proud to be able to honor Charlottesville’s promise by supporting Shaniece in her quest for higher education.

Current CCSP scholars, remember your deadline to renew your scholarship for the fall semester is also March 1.

Best wishes to you all.

Tara Ingram, Edem Tatteh, Stephanie Patterson

The Charlottesville Community Scholarship Program is very pleased to announce its inaugural class of adult scholarship recipients. Tara Ingram, Edem Tatteh, and Stephanie Patterson all applied for scholarship assistance in the CCSP’s first fall application period for adults 25 years of age or greater. We wish them much success as they continue their studies. The next application deadline is March 1, for all resident graduating seniors in the Charlottesville public school system and for resident adult graduates of city schools, as well as for employees of the city, including the school system.

Originally from Turkey, Tara came to the United States 12 years ago, after working in the U.S. General Consulate office in Istanbul, where she polished her English. In 2009, she taught Turkish language classes at U.Va. After working as a substitute teacher in the Charlottesville schools over the past two years, she has decided to become a school counselor. “I strongly believe that I have a talent to reach children at any age.” She intends to earn a master’s degree in counseling after finishing her bachelor’s degree at Mary Baldwin College, with help from CCSP. “This scholarship is such an uplifting energy,” she notes. “I don’t look at it as just a sum of money. It helps me get up and go.”

Edem is from the small West African nation of Togo (slightly smaller than West Virginia, with a population of approximately 6.7 million), where French is the official language. With English as his second language, Edem received a visa to attend college in America. He works in housekeeping at the Omni Hotel on the Downtown Mall and is studying engineering at PVCC because of his “good skills in math and physics.”

Stephanie loves children. She has seven children of her own (ages 22, 20, 18, 16, 14, 11, and 9) and spends her work hours supporting children with special needs as a teaching assistant at Jackson Via Elementary School. “Sometimes I feel like being at work is a break because I’m so busy with my own kids when I’m home,” she says. Stephanie is completing the final courses she needs to enroll in the Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies (BIS) program at the University of Virginia, with the ultimate goal of becoming a special education teacher.

If you’d like to help the CCSP continue this important work, you can contact the CCSP board at scholars@cvillescholarship.com, follow us on Twitter (CvilleCSP) and Facebook, donate, and encourage a potential scholar to apply. Our next deadline is March 1.

Rev. Ralph Brown

“Thank you and the Charlottesville Community Scholarship Program for your support and encouragement over the past few years. In 2009 I successfully completed required classes with high marks at PVCC, classes that were transferred to Bluefield College, where I received a bachelor of science degree in December 2010.”

That’s the start of a heartwarming note from Ralph Brown Sr. to Mary Jane King, Piedmont Virginia Community College administrator and Charlottesville Community Scholarship Program scholarship committee chair. A recent recipient of CCSP funding to further his education, Rev. Brown is a Pentecostal minister, a chef, and a recently minted Bluefield College graduate, having received his bachelor’s degree in organizational management and development in December 2010. The CEO and president of RBC Institute, a center for faith-based and community learning located in Charlottesville, Chef Brown has taught many classes on safe food handling. In volunteer roles, he has served this community in many ways over the years, including as a mayoral appointee to the Sister City Commission and as a Toys for Tots sponsor and volunteer.

Getting that bachelor’s degree wasn’t easy, A Vietnam-era veteran with a Veterans Administration disability rating, Rev. Brown appreciates the funding help from CCSP and credits the caring staff and instructors at PVCC with the help he needed to succeed as a student.

“With their help I learned that I was going to have put in extra time, sit closer to the front of the class, and take responsibility for making sure the instructors understood my unique situation to make the best grades possible.

“Thank you and the people of the Charlottesville for your contribution to my success.”