Student Scholarships
One of the top reasons students drop out of college is financial difficulty. Many of our students work full- or part-time jobs - as well as balance family, community, volunteer and personal commitments. Scholarships are often the deciding factor in whether or not a student can attend college.
FCC Foundation Board of Directors is committed to funding all scholarships at a minimum equivalent to a 3-credit class. For 2016-2017, each scholarship is at least $500. In 2016-2017, the FCC Foundation awarded over $500,000 in scholarships to 582 students. An additional $44,000 was awarded in Student Success Funds to 103 students.
If you are interested in creating an endowed or non-endowed scholarship at Frederick Community College, please contact Michael Thornton at 301.624.2851
Endowed funds ensure that scholarships will be available from year to year. Your original gift is invested through the University System of Maryland Foundation (USMF) and becomes the principal which generates earnings for the fund.
A portion of the earnings is used to award scholarships or to support FCC programs and services (as the donor designates), according to the Foundation's Spending Policy. The remaining earnings are re-invested in the principal to offset inflation. The principal is never disbursed (unless authorized by the donor in accordance with UPMIFA - Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act) so it continues to generate income for future needs.
A gift of $15,000 is required to establish an endowment and can be received as a one-time gift or paid over a period years. As the donor, you designate the name of the fund and the criteria for the scholarship or program.
Guidelines for establishing a non-endowed fund to support college programs and services are the same as for student scholarships.
A non-endowed (or "direct") scholarship may be established through a single gift or through regularly scheduled payments.
Scholarships may be disbursed one time, on a semester-by-semester basis, or annually.
The donor designates the name of the scholarship and its qualifications (e.g., county residence; credit load; GPA; financial need; major, etc.)