SCHOLARSHIPS

What is POSSE?

Founded in 1989, Posse identifies public high school students with extraordinary academic and leadership potential who may be overlooked by traditional college selection processes. Posse extends to these students the opportunity to pursue personal and academic excellence by placing them in supportive, multicultural teams—Posses—of 10 students. Posse partner colleges and universities award Posse Scholars four-year, full-tuition leadership scholarships.

Check out “The Posse Video” from The Posse Foundation on Vimeo. 

CLICK HERE to view Posse Chicago Brochure

For more information visit: www.possefoundation.org

POSSE Chicago Partner Colleges & Universities:

• 1. Connecticut College - New London, Connecticut

  2. Cornell University (Arts & Sciences) - Ithaca, New York

  3. DePauw University - Greencastle, Indiana

  4. Dickinson College - Carlisle, Pennsylvania 

  5. Hobart & William Smith Colleges - Geneva, New York

  6. Middlebury College - Middlebury, Vermont

  7. Oberlin College - Oberlin, Ohio

  8. Pomona College - Claremont, California

  9. Trinity College - Hartford, Connecticut

  10. University of North Carolina School of the Arts - Winston-Salem, North Carolina

  11. University of Wisconsin-Madison - Madison, Wisconsin

  12. Whitman College - Walla Walla, Washington

Why POSSE?

The Posse Foundation has three goals: 1) to expand the pool from which top colleges and universities can recruit outstanding young leaders from diverse backgrounds; 2) to help these institutions build more interactive campus environments so that they can become more welcoming institutions for students from all backgrounds; 3) to ensure that Posse Scholars persist in their academic studies and graduate so that they can take on leadership positions in the workforce.

Are you POSSE?

Posse is looking for individuals who have demonstrated leadership ability, communication and team building skills. High school grade point average and SAT/ACT scores are considered but are not solely the basis for selection. Posse looks for students who have done well academically, but who may not be considering (or might be missed by) some of the top universities (which often rely more heavily upon traditional admissions measures such as SAT/ACT scores). Winners of the Posse Scholarship have been positive contributors to their schools and communities. They are the kinds of students who change the climate for the better. They are interested in issues of community and diversity. They are mature team-players who are able to not only take care of themselves, but also to look out for their peers. Remember, Posse welcomes nontraditional candidates—those who may not have considered, or may have been overlooked by top colleges. We are looking for the students who have the perseverance and drive to make it in a highly competitive academic environment if given the support of a positive team of peers, a Posse.

The POSSE Nominee Application Process:

Lane Tech can nominate 25 POSSE candidates each year.  Candidates are selected during their Junior year in May. In order to be considered as a POSSE Scholar Nominee, Juniors must submit an Online Nomination Application. Ms. Console, Counselor, along with her team, reviews nomination applications and selects the candidates. 

CLICK HERE to complete the POSSE NOMINATION APPLICATION

Application Deadline: Wednesday, May 1st (extensions available-email rconsole@cps.edu) 

POSSE Informational Meeting for Juniors:

When: Wednesday, April 10th @ 8:47 AM (Advisory/Champions Hour) or 11:53 AM (5th Period Lunch)

Where: CCC (Room 135)

Description: Juniors who are interested in the POSSE Scholarship are welcomed to attend an informational meeting. This is a great opportunity to learn more about POSSE and see if it is a good fit for you! You will learn about the scholarship program and the nomination application process.

Dynamic Assessment Process (DAP):

After being selected as a POSSE Nominee, students undergo a Dynamic Assessment Process (DAP). Posse’s Dynamic Assessment Process (DAP) is a unique evaluation method that identifies young leaders with great potential.

Running from September through December each year, DAP finds students who might be missed by the traditional admissions criteria at highly selective schools but who can excel on campus. DAP uses nontraditional forums to evaluate potential, offering nominated students an opportunity to demonstrate their intrinsic leadership ability, their skill at working in a team setting, and their motivation and drive to succeed.

DAP has proven to be an extremely effective tool. Using the three-part process, which includes group and individual interviews, Posse staff and partner college administrators ultimately select a diverse group of 10 students—a Posse—for each institution.

Previous POSSE Winners:

94 Lane Posse Scholars since 2012!...that’s $25.5 million! CLICK HERE to check out the list!

What is QuestBridge?

QuestBridge is a non-profit organization that has worked since 1994 to connect bright, motivated low-income students with educational and scholarship opportunities at some of the nation's best colleges and universities.

QuestBridge offers two programs for high school students:

• • 1. The College Prep Scholarship for juniors who are preparing for the college application process

    2. The National College Match for seniors applying to college

For more information visit: www.questbridge.org or check out this Power Point Presentation

What is the QuestBridge College Prep Scholarship?

Through QuestBridge's College Prep Scholarship, more than 1,500 high-achieving low-income juniors will be selected as College Prep Scholars to receive awards designed to help them become successful applicants to top colleges.

High school juniors who complete our free, online application (available in February each year) are eligible for a range of awards. All of the awards are designed to prepare students to make the most of their chances in the college admissions process. The awards include:

• • • Full scholarships to summer programs at leading universities such as Brandeis, Emory, Harvard, Notre Dame, Stanford, Penn, and Yale

    • Invitations to attend the annual QuestBridge College Admissions Conferences, where students can meet college admissions officers and attend workshops on applying to leading colleges as low-income students

    • Individualized college counseling provided by QuestBridge staff and current Quest Scholars

    • All-expense-paid visits to partner college campuses

    • Tele-mentoring with Amherst College students about the college admissions process

    What is the QuestBridge National College Match?

The QuestBridge National College Match helps outstanding low-income high school seniors gain admission and full four-year scholarships to some of the nation's most selective colleges.

QuestBridge works with over 33 partner colleges that actively seek students who have overcome economic obstacles to achieve academic success. The QuestBridge application provides admissions officers with a fuller picture of students' unique circumstances and accomplishments. If a student is admitted to a partner college through the College Match, the college will provide a scholarship that covers the full cost of tuition, room, and board, typically worth around $200,000 or more.

Even though the "sticker price" of attending many private colleges is quite high, QuestBridge's partner colleges offer generous financial aid packages that cover 100% of demonstrated financial need, making them very affordable for low-income students. In 2011, 321 students gained admission and full scholarships to leading colleges through the College Match, and we anticipate over 1,300 more QuestBridge applicants will be admitted to our partner colleges via the regular admissions process with generous financial aid.

College Match Schools for Undocumented Students: http://www.questbridge.org/images/stories/ncm-images/citizenship-info_updated_10.21.png

Eligibility Requirements:

While there are no absolute academic or financial cut-offs, the majority of successful applicants share the following characteristics:

• • • They are in the top 5% or 10% of their class.

    • They have strong grades in challenging classes and high standardized test scores.

    • Their household income is less than $60,000 a year, and often less than $50,000 a year.

    • Often they are among the first generation in their family to attend college.

The College Prep Scholarship Application Process:

High school juniors can apply to the College Prep Scholarship through a free online application. The application allows you to apply to multiple awards at once.  The application becomes available in early February and is due in March.

Visit www.questbridge.org for the online application.

The National College Match Application Process:

High school seniors can apply for the National College Match starting in August.  The National College Match application requires you to provide extensive information on your academic accomplishments and financial background, as well as write three essays, complete short answer questions, and gather two letters of recommendation, a Secondary School Report (counselor recommendation), a transcript, and test score reports.  There are two ways to apply:

• • 1. The National College Match allows you to apply to up to 8 of our partner colleges by using one application. You will be asked to rank these colleges in order of your preference. The National College Match application is due in late September.

    2. The QuestBridge Regular Decision process allows you to apply to any or all of our partner colleges through a traditional regular decision process. You may choose not to rank colleges for the College Match process and only apply to our partner colleges for Regular Decision. Or, if you apply for the College Match and are not selected for a match scholarship, you can request to have your application forwarded to our partner colleges for Regular Decision.

In order to participate in the Regular Decision process, you must submit your National College Match application by late September.

Visit www.questbridge.org for the online application.

Questbridge FAQ page for students who are not a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident: https://questbridge.zendesk.com/entries/23033577-Can-I-apply-to-QuestBridge-if-I-am-not-a-U-S-Citizen-or-Permanent-Resident-

What is the Chick Evans Scholarship?

The Chick Evans Scholarship is a full tuition and housing college scholarship for golf caddies that is renewable for up to four years. Each year, more than 800 deserving caddies across the country attend college on a four-year scholarship from the Evans Scholars Foundation. Selected applicants must have a strong caddie record, excellent grades, outstanding character and demonstrated financial need.

Since 1930, when the first two Evans Scholars enrolled at Northwestern University, more than 10,000 outstanding young men and women have been awarded Evans Scholarships. Most recipients attend one of the 14 universities across the nation where the Evans Scholars Foundation owns and operates a Scholarship House.

At the Evans Scholarship Houses, students live and work together cooperatively. Each House elects its own officers, runs social and service activities, and participates in campus programs. The Evans Scholars Chapters have earned a reputation on each campus for scholastic achievement and excellence in community service.

Living and working together provides Evans Scholars an opportunity to develop leadership capabilities and strong communication skills. We believe that the sense of empowerment fostered through chapter living is largely responsible for the tremendous success of our 14 Evans Scholarship Houses. When you compare our chapter houses with other campus organizations, they rank at or near the top in academics and community service.

For more information visit: www.wgaesf.org

Which Universities can I attend?

Scholarships are awarded to the universities listed below, depending on the state in which the candidate resides. Living in an Evans Scholarship House on campus is an integral component of the Evans Scholars Program. Candidates must apply to the Evans Scholars university(ies) listed for their state.  Illinois residents are expected to apply to a minimum of two universities listed. Candidates apply directly to the university(ies) for admission. Below is a list of schools that students in each state may be eligible to attend.

Illinois residents can apply to these universities: 

University of Illinois (Champaign); Northern Illinois University (DeKalb); Northwestern University (Evanston); Marquette University (Milwaukee, WI); Indiana University (Bloomington, IN); Miami University (Oxford, OH); Indiana Purdue University (West Lafayette); Indiana University (Bloomington)

Eligibility Requirements:

To qualify, caddies must be nominated by their club and meet four requirements:

• • 1. Strong caddie record: Applicants must have caddied, successfully and regularly, for a minimum of two years and are also expected to caddie and/or work at their sponsoring club during the summer when they apply for the scholarship.

    2. Excellent academics: Applicants must have completed their junior year of high school with above a B average in college preparatory courses and are required to take the ACT.

    3. Demonstrated financial need: Applicants must clearly establish their need for financial assistance.

    4. Outstanding character: Applicants must be outstanding in character, integrity and leadership.

The Application Process:

A password and instructions on how to complete the application are provided by the sponsoring club. Applications are accepted in the beginning of the candidate's senior year of high school. Students are encouraged to complete their applications on or before September 30. In addition to the application, the following materials are required:

• 1. High school evaluation (along with an official transcript, including overall GPA, rank in class if available, and standardized test scores) and the high school letter of recommendation.

  2. Caddie evaluation and the club letter of recommendation.

  3. Official financial documentation including a copy of parents’ most recent federal tax return and the required College Scholarship Service Financial Aid Profile. The Evans Scholars Foundation code for the College Scholarship Service Financial Aid Profile is 0153.

All candidates are required to take the ACT including the writing portion.

Previous Winners:

What is the Gates Millennium?

The Gates Millennium Scholars (GMS) Program selects 1,000 talented students each year to receive a good-through-graduation scholarship to use at any college or university of their choice. Gates Millennium Scholars are provided with personal and professional development through our leadership programs along with academic support throughout their college career.  The GMS, established in 1999, was initially funded by a $1billion grant from Bill and Melinda Gates.

For more information visit: www.gmsp.org

Why Gates Millennium?

The goal of GMS is to promote academic excellence and to provide an opportunity for outstanding minority students with significant financial need to reach their highest potential by:

• • • Reducing financial barriers for African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian Pacific Islander American and Hispanic American students with high academic and leadership promise who have significant financial need;

    • Increasing the representation of these target groups in the disciplines of computer science, education, engineering, library science, mathematics, public health and the sciences, where these groups are severely underrepresented;

    • Developing a diversified cadre of future leaders for America by facilitating successful completion of bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees; and

    • Providing seamless support from undergraduate through doctoral programs, for students selected as Gates Millennium Scholars entering target disciplines.

Eligibility Requirements:

• 1. Minimum 3.3 GPA

  2. Ethnicity: African American, American Indian - Alaska Native, Asian Pacific Islander American, Hispanic American

  3. Residency Status: U.S. Citizen, U.S. Permanent Resident/Foreign National

The Application Process:

Students who meet the eligibility requirements can apply for the GMSP in the Fall of their Senior year.  There are three required forms: the student’s application (Nominee Personal Information Form), an evaluation of the student’s academic record (Nominator Form) and an evaluation of the student’s community service and leadership activities (Recommender Form) by the deadline in September. 

Visit www.gmsp.org for the online application. 

Previous Winners: