Month: November 2022
11.01.2022
The Sallie Mae Fund and Thurgood Marshall College Fund Award $250,000 in Scholarships to 25 High School Students
Twenty-five diverse and deserving students from across the country received $10,000 to help pay for their higher education through Sallie Mae’s Bridging the Dream Scholarship for High School Seniors. This year’s recipients excel inside and outside the classroom and are attending a diverse set of institutions – state colleges, ivy league universities, and Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Many of the recipients are also from underrepresented or historically underserved communities who often need additional support to access higher education.
The Bridging the Dream Scholarship program is part of a $3 million commitment made by The Sallie Mae Fund – in partnership with Thurgood Marshall College Fund – to open doors of higher education for students from all backgrounds.
In addition to The Bridging the Dream Scholarship for High School Seniors, Sallie Mae also offers The Completing the Dream Scholarship, and The Bridging the Dream Scholarship For Graduate Students.
Meet the 25 outstanding students.
2022-2023 Bridging the Dream Scholarship Recipients
Alayah Osullivan
Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
College: North Carolina A&T State University
Major/Minor: Biology, Psychology
Fun Fact: First person in her family to graduate high school and attend college
Bridgett Ellis
Hometown: Hamilton, MT
College: University of Montana Western
Major/Minor: Pre-Veterinary
Fun Fact: Won multiple rodeo titles and wants to specialize in equine dentistry
Chilynn Howard
Hometown: Avon, IN
College: Ball State University
Major/Minor: Fashion Merchandising and Business
Fun Fact: Wants to be an entrepreneur and create a platform for the Black community to discuss mental health
Courtney Exantus
Hometown: Clarksville, TN
College: Middle Tennessee State University
Major/Minor: Speech-Language Pathology
Fun Fact: Wants to make a difference in the speech-language pathology field, as only 3% of audiologists and speech-language pathologists are African American
Donnell Milton
Hometown: Katy, TX
College: Prairie View A&M University
Major/Minor: Digital Media Arts
Fun Fact: Wants to pursue a career in design, either in animation or video game development
Ebenezer Antwi
Hometown: Smyrna, DE
College: University of Delaware
Major/Minor: Criminology
Fun Fact: Passionate about raising awareness about the school to prison pipeline, and wants to fight for justice in the courtroom one day
Gracie Harmann
Hometown: Racine, WI
College: University of Wisconsin—Whitewater
Major/Minor: Pre-Veterinary, Biology
Fun Fact: Has wanted to become a vet since she was three
Jahni Glover
Hometown: Conyers, GA
College: North Carolina A&T State University
Major: Pre-Medicine, Biology
Fun Fact: Wants to become a pediatric doctor, and joined the Minority Association for Pre-Medical Students (MAPS)
Jiya Sharma
Hometown: Paramus, NJ
College: Seton Hall University
Major/Minor: Pre-medicine, Biology, Medical Humanities
Fun Fact: Wants to pursue a position in the medical field and help people in third-world countries
Joseph Thedford
Hometown: Florissant, MO
College: Jackson State University
Major/Minor: Civil Engineering
Fun Fact: In the marching band
KamDyn Hardin
Hometown: Citrus Heights, CA
College: Louisiana State University
Major/Minor: Business Management
Fun Fact: Wants to pursue a career in entrepreneurship and sports entertainment marketing
Madison Garrett
Hometown: Lindenhurst, NY
College: Columbia University
Major/Minor: Political Science
Fun Fact: Advocates for Black adolescent mental health and founded her own GenZ magazine
Manyi Ngu
Hometown: Jacksonville, FL
College: University of North Florida
Major/Minor: Graphic Design
Fun Fact: First-generation immigrant from Cameroon
Marisol Deanda
Hometown: Schuyler, NE
College: University of Nebraska—Lincoln
Major/Minor: Nutrition
Fun Fact: Becoming a certified personal trainer
Marisol Mora
Hometown: Burkburnett, TX
College: Midwestern State University
Major/Minor: Nursing
Fun Fact: Wants to become a pediatric nurse practitioner
Morghan Williams
Hometown: Richmond, VA
College: North Carolina A&T State University
Major/Minor: Kinesiology
Fun Fact: Wants to own her own physical therapy practice to help people like her brother, who is autistic.
Tariq Cunningham
Hometown: Fort Washington, MD
College: Bowie State University
Major/Minor: Finance, Accounting, Computer
Fun Fact: Wants to become a CEO of a technology company or bank, and help his community by creating a financial literacy tutoring program and opening a gaming and computer lab
Umulkheir Sharif Ali
Hometown: San Diego, CA
College: University of San Diego
Major/Minor: Psychology, Biomedical Ethics
Fun Fact: From Kenya, and wants to become a physician’s assistant to help underserved communities
Xavier Partee
Hometown: Whitsett, NC
College: North Carolina A&T State University
Major/Minor: Public Relations
Fun Fact: Wants to start a photography business on the side to support himself through college
Zakaria Melton
Hometown: Charlotte, NC
College: North Carolina Central University
Major/Minor: Psychology, African American Studies
Fun Fact: Wants to become a well-renowned therapist with her own practice, focusing on supporting mental health in the African American community
Zion Jackson
Hometown: Verona, PA
College: University of Pittsburgh
Major/Minor: Pre-law, Law and Society, Spanish and Film and Media Studies
Fun Fact: Has several creative hobbies including writing, photography and film that she would like to combine with law to enrich the Black community and cultivate Black minds
Londyn Jefferson
Hometown: Chicago, IL
College: University of Michigan—Ann Arbor
Major/Minor: Engineering, Computer Science
Fun Fact: Part of the Society of Women Engineers, the National Society of Black Engineers and the Black Students Union
Dora De La Cruz-Martinez
Hometown: West Liberty, IA
College: St. Ambrose University
Major/Minor: Pre-Law, Spanish
Khierston Nelson
Hometown: Burlington, NC
College: Savannah State University
Major/Minor: Forensic Biology, Criminology
Daaimah Husein
Hometown: Cincinnati, OH
College: Tennessee State University
Major/Minor: Computer Science
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11.01.2022
Three Ways to Reduce Student Loan Debt
Each year, the amount of student loan debt held by Americans grows. It reached a record-breaking high in 2021 at $1.7 trillion, more than four times its 2005-level of $391 billion.
The vast majority — 93% — of this debt is from federal loans. Meaning, less than $1 out of every $10 of student loan debt is a private loan. Without significant changes to the federal student loan program, the debt cycle will continue for students and families.
Here are three policy changes the federal government could enact to reform the student loan system and support students and families who need financial assistance:
1. Meaningfully Increase Pell Grants
Pell Grants provide need-based financial assistance to low-income students to help pay tuition, fees, room and board and other expenses. Since grant funding doesn’t need to be repaid —it’s essentially free money — distributing more funds through the Pell Grant would likely mean these students would take on fewer loans.
Critically, Pell Grants also ensure that the aid goes to the students who need it most, helping to increase access and make the college funding system more equitable.
2. Simplify the FAFSA®
Seven in 10 (70%) families reported completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) for academic year 2021-22, but three-quarters were unaware the FAFSA® is available starting in October, potentially leaving thousands in first-come, first-served free money on the table, according to “How America Pays for College 2022,” the annual study from Sallie Mae® and Ipsos.
The FAFSA® is the gateway to accessing more than $112 billion in grants, scholarships, and federal financial aid for higher education and states and colleges rely on information from the FAFSA® to determine need-based aid. Six years ago, the Department of Education moved the FAFSA® application start date from Jan. 1 to Oct. 1 to give families more time to complete it and better understand their financial aid eligibility earlier in the college application process. Despite those efforts, 75% of families are still unaware of the Oct. 1 open date, and only a little over half of families (54%) know all students are eligible to submit the FAFSA®. Many families also bypass the FAFSA because they don’t think they’d qualify for aid or find the application to complicated.
Lawmakers recently passed a bill that would simplify the form, but more is needed, including better informing students and families about deadlines to submit the form and debunking the perception that income is the only factor the government uses to decide if a student qualifies for federal financial aid.
3. Increase Loan Transparency
Federal student loans are subjected to less rigorous disclosure requirements than private student loans. The federal borrowing process could be improved to more clearly inform students and families about their specific borrowing plans.
Sallie Mae, a private lender, offers a variety of tools to ensure responsible lending — including Scholly, a one-stop shop to search and apply for millions of dollars of scholarships.