THE ALUMNI SCHOLARSHIP
Since 2003, The Alumni Scholarship Fund has made awards to dozens of outstanding juniors and seniors. Their passion for learning, excellent academic record, and commitment to their chosen field makes them deserving of their award.
Top 5 Reasons
 YOUR support of the Alumni Scholarship helps:
- Retain the best, brightest, and most creative students
- Preserve the socioeconomic diversity that makes Columbia a unique institution
- Heighten the growing international reputation of the school
- Expand the amount of scholarship funding available to creative and academic achievers
- Fulfill students’ dreams!
The Alumni Scholarship is awarded to full-time juniors and seniors with at least 90 credit hours. Recipients mush have earned a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher in their core concentration at Columbia, and have demonstrated financial need through their completed Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Awards are up to $3,000, with $1,500 being awarded in the fall and spring semesters
Alumni Scholarship Fund recipients, in their own words:
“Having the support of the Alumni Scholarship in my senior year allowed me, financially, to further my studies in the fields of graphic design and art history.”
– Joshua Covarrubias, Graphic Design, class of 2007
“It gave me a strong base of support… I was also able to get a high profile internship.”
– Christian Sprenger, FIlm/Video, class of 2007
“With the support I have completed a four-year degree in just two and a half years with time to develop my own business.”
– Spencer Elliot-Manhein, Marketing Communication, class of 2006
“With the Alumni Scholarship support I was able to devote time to creating my Senior Fashion Collection and portfolio of work without having to juggle two part-time jobs.”
– Erin Kaye Locksley Sanders, Fashion Design, class of 2007
THE ALUMNI TEXTBOOK FUND
In 2009, the college’s Office of Alumni Relations started administering the Alumni Textbook Fund. Contributors to this fund include Columbia College Chicago alumni and students, Marsh Affinity Practice, and the C. Louis Meyer Family Foundation. Since 2009, the Alumni Textbook Fund has provided more than $23,000 to more than 200 deserving students, assisting them in purchasing their textbooks. Without such a resource, many of these students face a three to four-week delay in the purchase of books, which is nearly one third of the entire semester. Because of this delay, students are not adequately prepared for class, and thus tend to earn lower grades.
Each school year, we choose up to 160 students to receive the $100 gift cards. Students are chosen in three ways:
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Students who were finalists in the Alumni Scholarship Fund program but did not receive the scholarship award. Eligibility requirements for this scholarship fund include:
- student’s family has $0 estimated family contribution towards their tuition;
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student must maintain at least a 3.0 GPA;
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letters of recommendation; and
- work samples.
- Each semester, the chair of each academic department has the opportunity to choose two students to receive the gift card, based on need and merit.
- In response to the economic downturn, four offices came together to assist students: Alumni Relations, Student Relations, Counseling Services, and Conaway Achievement Program (a federally-funded Student Support Services Program that helps low-income, first-generation college and special needs students actualize their maximum potential and persist toward graduation). The staff in these offices identified students who were most in need of financial assistance for books. They gathered the names from all offices, identified which students were suggested more than once, and recommended the highest-need students to the Alumni Relations Coordinator.
Alumni Textbook Fund recipients, in their own words:
The gift card towards my books will help tremendously because books right now are nowhere near cheap… Being a single mother with determination to finish school, I need every bit of motivation to set an example for my daughter. Thank you for this opportunity and the motivation to continue to be successful and making the steps to fulfill my dreams...
-- Tanicka Hill, BA Radio, 2014
When I heard that I was awarded the gift card by The Alumni Textbook Fund I truly felt blessed. When a student is in dire need of financial services, especially when the situation seems out of their hands, it’s good to know that people have your back in your time of need. Being a Creative Fiction Writing major to me means not only would I need text books for my General Education classes but my core classes as well. To be a good writer means to be an avid and critical reader, and to be unprepared for my classes seems like a nightmare... I feel as though I already started the school year a bit unprepared because I have no way to pay for my books and with this gift card I know that I’d be well on track.
-- Alyssa Sandoval, BA Fiction Writing, 2014
I would like The Alumni Association to know that this reward truly wouldn’t be a waste of money. I will utilize my resources to grow and to create more resources for others in the future.
-- Devin Brashear, BA Arts Management, 2015
With the economic downturn, we are seeing more students than ever before in financial distress and unable to afford the basics such as housing, food and school supplies. Currently, 22% of our undergraduate students show that their family can contribute $0 towards their tuition.