Schools

CT Higher Education Group Giving $2,500 Scholarships out to 200 Random Students

You have to apply, and you must be a Connecticut high school senior who plans on attending college by 2015.

Are you a high school senior who plans on going to college? Need some extra cash for those higher education expenses?

Well, one state organization is offering a chance to win a $2,500 scholarship, and all you need to do is apply.

It's called the Chet Advanced Scholarship program, and it's sponsored by State Treasurer Denise L. Nappier, a trustee of the Connecticut Higher Education Trust (CHET).

Designed to help cover the mounting costs of higher education, the program will hold a random drawing totaling $500,000 to provide up to 200 Connecticut high school seniors with a $2,500 scholarship for college expenses. 

Seniors just need to apply for the scholarship online and, by October 2013, CHET will randomly draw 200 winners.

Applications to participate in the drawings will be accepted online at the group's website beginning at 8 a.m. on Sept. 16 and ending at 5 p.m. on Oct. 4, 2013.

“The challenges of financing a college education are daunting enough. Add to that our economy’s slow recovery, and we know that many Connecticut families are struggling to provide a solid future for their children,” said Nappier. “For students with the drive to attend college, CHET Advance offers them an opportunity to realize their dream."

Plans are underway to roll out the second phase of CHET Advance during the next calendar year for younger students as well, with a portion of the scholarship winners chosen based on need and scholastic achievement, the organization said.

Altogether, CHET Advance has funding commitments to distribute a total of more than $2 million during the next four years.

CHET Advance is administered under the banner of the Connecticut Higher Education Trust, Connecticut’s 529 college savings plan. No CHET account participant fees or state funds will be used for awards issued under CHET Advance Scholarship.

The Scholarship will provide up to 100 awards in each of two categories of high school seniors for a total of up to 200 winners. Winning recipients in each category will be selected by a random drawing. Also, to ensure there are winners from across the state, no more than 40 winners from each of Connecticut’s five Congressional Districts will be selected (20 from each category, all viewable below).

Category 1: All seniors who attend a public, private, or parochial Connecticut high school other than a high school identified by the Connecticut Department of Education as a Review or Turnaround school as of August 2013; or attend a public, private or parochial school outside of Connecticut and either the student or one of the student’s parents resides in Connecticut; or are home-schooled seniors in Connecticut;

Category 2: All seniors who attend a Review or Turnaround high school. By state law, Review and Turnaround schools are low achieving schools subject to intensified supervision and direction by the state Department of Education. These schools receive focused resources to improve the performance of students. A full list of the 36 Review and Turnaround schools is included on the program website.

“We strived to make sure that this program was available to those who can least afford to go to college. Students who need an extra financial boost will have the chance to get it, and next calendar year we will continue to focus on need as an eligibility requirement for a significant number of scholarships to be granted ” Treasurer Nappier said.

Additionally, highlights of the Official Rules include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Students must begin college no later than September 2015, and use the full $2,500 scholarship by June 30, 2016. Status as a senior at a Connecticut high school must be verified with an official school transcript. Scholarship awards will be paid directly to students’ colleges starting in the fall of 2014.

  • To participate in the CHET Advance drawing, all eligible students must complete an entry form on the CHET Advance Scholarship website, www.chetadvance.com, during the three-week entry period of September 16 through October 4 by 5 p.m.

  • To avoid any conflict of interest, any high school senior whose parent is, or who resides in the household of, an employee of the Office of the Connecticut Treasurer, TIAA- CREF Tuition Financing Inc., The Hartford or International Scholarship and Tuition Services, Inc., is ineligible to participate in the CHET Advance Scholarship, if such employee provides direct support to the CHET Advance Scholarship or, in the case of employees of The Hartford, its 529 plans.

  • To ensure the impartiality of the random drawings, International Scholarship and Tuition Services, which has more than 25 years of scholarship administration experience, will set up and run the selection process, with oversight from TIAA-CREF. 

See the full press release attached for further information, or visit www.chetadvance.com.


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