During an assembly last Friday morning, 50 Vernon High School seniors were surprised to learn there was a cumulative total of over $136 million in scholarships just waiting for them to claim. When the seniors opened their individual envelopes, each saw how many colleges and universities would accept them if they were to apply, and how much in scholarship money they would receive from each of those institutions.
The scholarship celebration came about through the high school’s partnership with VU Scholarships, which offers seniors an opportunity to learn more about the options available to them after graduation. Parents of all VHS seniors had the option to “opt-in” for their senior to take part in the VU Scholarships program. VU Scholarships then reviewed the academics of the seniors who had opted in to determine who qualified for the program.
“VU is an academic initiative program that takes a senior’s GPA, class rank, and ACT scores and matches them to scholarships they are eligible for from colleges where they would be accepted if they were to apply,” said Rae Ann Stevens, Vernon ISD’s Director of Programs and Student Services. “Athletes are recruited and colleges offer them scholarships based on how well they play without them having to apply to that college. VU does the exact same thing, but with a senior’s academics. Through VU Scholarships, students can see what schools across the country have to offer them before they even apply.
“Plus,” Stevens added, “students can also see how their scholarship could increase if they increased their GPA or retook the ACT and scored higher.”
At the start of the assembly, the 50 seniors were escorted to the gym floor by the VHS cheerleaders and Roarin’ Lion Band. After VHS Principal Mariah Byars and Stevens explained the reason for the assembly and why the group was on the gym floor, the students received their individual envelopes.
That’s when the surprises started.
“My scholarship total is $3.1 million and I would be accepted at 65 colleges,” Sarah Black said with a look of disbelieve on her face. “I want to go to Texas Tech or West Texas A&M and they’re both on my list.”
The scholarship total is the cumulative amount of what each college on the student’s list offered them.
Jamarion Willie would automatically be accepted at 62 colleges if he were to apply, and his cumulative total was $2.7 million.
“This definitely helps for sure,” he said.
The average number of colleges and universities on each student’s list hovered around 50, with the average cumulative amount in scholarships around $2.3 million.
“This program helps us show seniors opportunities they may not have known about, or even considered, otherwise,” Stevens explained. “There may be a college on their list that they never heard of, but if the college is offering quite a bit in scholarship money it offers them another option to consider. These scholarship offers are not going to cover the total cost of their education, so it is important for these and all seniors to continue to apply for other scholarships.”