June 15th, 2024 was the 30th and final Wayne C. Henderson Music Festival and Guitar Competition. Although the festival is no longer held, we hope our foundation’s ability to offer scholarships and grants to Traditional Appalachian Music Non-Profit Programs and young students of Traditional Acoustic Appalachian Music will thrive for many years. Music programs may be awarded grants of $1,000 or more, and individuals may be awarded scholarships up to $500, which can be applied to individual lessons or a music camp. Fees for camp tuition or private lessons (not to exceed the amount of the scholarship) will be paid directly to the music camp or instructor. All individual scholarships awarded each year must be used by August 15th of the following year or be forfeited back to the scholarship fund.

Due Date: 06/30/2026

*Only students/musicians of Traditional Appalachian Acoustic Music age 16 & under may apply. 

     Each year NPVA offers merit-based scholarships for students who are committed to volunteering and making a difference in their communities. Our scholarships are open to students pursuing undergraduate and graduate degrees.

• Act of Kindness Scholarship (Due Date: 02/28/26)

• Altruism + All Good Deeds Scholarship (Due Date: 05/31/26)

• Building Bridges Scholarship (Due Date: 09/30/26)

• Aaliyah Lee Scholarship (Due Date: 11/30/26)

     The Coolidge Scholarship is an annually awarded, full-ride, presidential scholarship that covers a student’s tuition, room, board, and expenses for four years of undergraduate study. The Coolidge Scholarship may be used by recipients at any accredited college or university in the United States. Anyone of any background, pursuing any academic discipline of study, may apply to this non-partisan, need-blind, program.

     Students apply for the Coolidge Scholarship during their junior year of high school. Finalists are flown in for a finalist weekend at the Coolidge Historic Site in Plymouth Notch, Vermont where they interview with the Coolidge Scholars Finalist Jury. Recipients of the Coolidge Scholarship are notified of their award late in their junior year, before college application (note: current high school seniors are not eligible to apply). Finalists who are not named Coolidge Scholars are eligible to receive a smaller, one-time, college scholarship.

     Calvin Coolidge worked hard in academics; the young New Englander’s only sport was public speaking, often on public policy. The main criterion that distinguishes Coolidge Scholars therefore is academic excellence. Secondary criteria include: demonstrated interest in public policy; an appreciation for the values Coolidge championed; as well as humility and service.

     The summer before their senior year of high school, newly-selected Coolidge Scholars spend several orientation days at the picturesque birthplace of the President, Plymouth Notch, Vermont. There scholars get to know Coolidge and his world and return to Plymouth Notch for a week each summer while in college.

     Although only a few students are named Coolidge Scholars each year, top Coolidge Scholarships applicants are named “Coolidge Senators.” Coolidge Senators are invited, all-expenses-paid, to participate in the Senators Summit that takes place each summer. At the Summit,  learn about President Coolidge and meet other high achieving students from across the country.

Due Date: Spring 2026