By Terry Webster/ne news editor
A $7 million scholarship endowment fund is aimed at providing opportunities for more Birdville school district graduates to attend Tarrant County College.
The Birdville ISD Endowed Scholarship Program, established in 2009, uses revenue from mineral leases to provide the scholarships.
“We wanted to impact our students’ education and impress on them that an education beyond high school is important,” said Birdville spokesman Mark Thomas. “For some, they are the first person in their family to get a college education. This can help take away any financial concerns.”
The program is already being credited with an increase in Birdville graduates enrolling at TCC.
A total of 354 Birdville graduates enrolled at TCC in fall 2009. This fall, 452 students are enrolled. Of those students, 143 were eligible for the scholarship. The program provides up to $750 per semester for one school year, or the entire cost of attending TCC full-time.
“We can assume that the scholarship opportunity impacted those numbers significantly,” said TCC Foundation executive director Joe McIntosh.
The average scholarship award was $620 per student. Thirty-four students received $750, the maximum amount of the award, according to the Birdville school district.
Students can use the scholarship money to attend the TCC campus of their choice.
The scholarship fund is used as a final resource after students have exhausted all other financial aid possibilities, McIntosh said.
“First, they apply for federal aid, and if that’s available to them, that’s great,” he said. “The college’s Stars of Tomorrow program is the second financial avenue students can pursue. If they don’t qualify for either of those, Birdville picks up the third option.”
If federal financial aid or other programs do not pick up the entire cost of tuition, the Birdville program may pick up the difference. If a student receives at least $750 in other scholarship funding, they are not eligible for the Birdville program.
