Fill - Free fillable 2021 OFE Scholarship Application PDF form

Student Name ____________________________________________1

Out for Education

2021 Scholarship Instructions

OBJECTIVE

Out for Education (OFE) recognizes outstanding lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer – plus

(LGBTQ+) students and contributes toward their college education. This scholarship program celebrates

the achievements of the individuals who are worthy of our support.

SCHOLARSHIP DESCRIPTION

Scholarship awards will be determined by funds available at the time they are granted. During the last

several years, OFE has recognized and granted outstanding LGBTQ+ students multiple scholarships

ranging from $1,000 over one year to $10,000 over four years.

Student must maintain a minimum 2.75 out of 4.0 GPA and a full-time student workload (24 hours over an

academic year) to continue to be eligible.

The scholarship recipient MUST provide an official transcript at the end of each academic year to

be eligible for continued disbursement of funds for the following academic year.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR SCHOLARSHIP AWARD

The award of this scholarship will be based on a combination of achievement in the areas of academic

excellence, leadership, extra- and co-curricular activities, and financial need.

Applicants will be required to complete the attached application and submit an essay. If an application is

not complete on time and student has not reached out to OFE, applicant will forfeit their submission. The

essay should include a biographical narrative discussing your self-identification as a member of the

LGBTQ+ community. It needs to include your role in relation to your family, your school, your friends

and community, and your personal and professional goals. This essay may differ from the traditional

essays required by scholarship organizations, as we want to know about you as an individual.

ELIGIBILITY

Eligible applicants must be attending or have attended a Houston-area (which includes Harris or a

contiguous county) high school or college at the time of application and must be ages 17 - 25 (as of

February 28, 2021). Students may use scholarship at any eligible college/university in the U.S.

Student Name ____________________________________________2

SELECTION PROCESS – UNDERGRADUATE AND GRADUATE SCHOLARS

To qualify for the selection process the student must submit:

 A completed application;

 A current official transcript in a sealed envelope;

1

 An essay;

 A resume; and

 Two letters of reference (emailed as scanned copies directly to us by each reference)

OFE will judge each applicant’s completed application, overall achievements, and financial need. The

selection committee will then make preliminary selections for finalists who will be invited to an interview.

INTERVIEWS

These finalists will be interviewed individually by a panel of community members March 20 &21, 2021.

SCHEDULE FOR SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION:

Applications, except for the transcript (see footnote 1, below), must be emailed to

scholarshipapps@outforeducation.org no later than February 28, 2021, and must include a completed

application, essay, and the resume.

References should be emailed separately by each reference, and each reference letter must also be emailed

no later than February 28, 2020.

All completed forms must be emailed to scholarshipapps@outforeducation.org by the due date.

Incomplete applications will NOT be considered.

Remember to mail ONLY your official transcript, to be postmarked by February 28

TH

, to the following

address:

Out For Education

PO Box 667010

Houston, TX 77266-7010

AWARDS CEREMONY

The awards ceremony will be held (tentatively) on May 15, 2021, location TBD. All scholarship recipients

are expected to attend. Students will be notified if they are receiving an award in the first week of

May.

If you forget any of these dates, please contact us on Facebook.org/outforeducation or email additional

questions to scholarshipapps@outforeducation.org

1

Please note that you must send your official transcript, in a sealed envelope, to be postmarked no later than February 28,

2021, to the following address: Out for Education, P.O. Box 667010, Houston, TX 77266-7010. The rest of your

application materials should be emailed, no later than February 28, 2021, to scholarship

apps@outforeducation.org.

Student Name ____________________________________________3

OUT FOR EDUCATION 2021 SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION

P

lease type or print legibly:

Name ________________________________________Street Address ___________________________________________

City/State/Zip _______________________________________________ County __________________________________

E-mail Address__________________________________________________________

Home Phone __________________________ Cell Phone ______________________________ (check preferred #)

Are you enrolled in high school or college/university? _____________________________________

Birthdate___________________________ Gender______________________ Age as of 02/28/2021: _____________

High School Attending or Attended___________________________________ Expected/Actual Graduation Date_________

Approximate Class Ranking, if known (For example: 23 of 42) _________________ GPA __________________

College Currently Attending or Attended__________________________________________________________

Degree (BA, BS, etc.) & Major _______________________________________Expected/Actual Graduation Date_________

Approximate Class Academic Ranking, if known (For example: 23 of 42): __________________ GPA_________________

How do you self-identify?: Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Other_______________

Don’t forget to send a current official transcript!

RESUME

Submit a resume that lists the following: extra- and co-curricular activities, hobbies, achievements in and out of school,

academic honors, and other experience pertinent to the receipt of this scholarship.

Do you participate in any LGBTQ+ -based youth groups? Yes No

If “Yes” for the question above, please list the youth group(s). If “no”, please provide insight on your school queer

environment.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Are you “out” to anyone? Describe: _____________________________________________________________________ _

What is/will be your major field(s) of study in college? _________________________________________________________

Which educational institution(s) have you applied to or are you currently enrolled in?

____________________________________________________________________________________

W

hich educational institution(s) have you been accepted to or are attending?

____________________________________________________________________________________

Student Name ____________________________________________5

COLLEGE INFORMATION

In order to distribute scholarship funds to your educational institution, you must provide the following information PRIOR to

classes resuming in fall. If you are unsure of the correct contact information to include, please call your school’s financial

aid/scholarships office and ask them what address scholarship checks from outside organizations should be mailed to –and to

whose attention, if needed.

Note that if you fail to provide the correct information, such failure may delay receipt of OFE scholarship funds at your

school’s financial aid office and delay the crediting of such funds to your account.

Educational Institution Name:_____________________________________________________________________________

Financial Aid/Scholarship Office Name: _____________________________________________________________________

University Street/Box Address:____________________________________________________________________________

University City/State/Zip ________________________________________________________________________________

You must provide a current official transcript at the end of each academic year

(postmarked no later than February 28) in order to keep an ongoing scholarship.

NO TRANSCRIPT = NO MONEY

OFE SCHOLAR AGREEMENT

A. Providing Records -- If I am granted an OFE Scholarship, I agree to provide the following information to

OFE while I am enrolled in a university/institution of higher learning and receiving said scholarship funding:

1. I will supply OFE with a copy of my current, official transcript at the completion of each academic year

(postmarked no later than February 28). Official transcripts must come in a sealed envelope from the school.

Remember, NO TRANSCRIPT = NO MONEY.

2. Should I withdraw from the university after registration, I will promptly inform OFE so an application for

a refund of scholarship funds can be submitted.

3. I will keep OFE current on all my addresses, telephone numbers, and e-mail changes throughout the

academic year.

I

understand that failure to provide the requested information may lead to withdrawal of ongoing

scholarship funds.

_________________________________________________________________________________

Printed Name Signature Date

Student Name ____________________________________________6

B. Publicity -- If I am granted an OFE scholarship, I understand that from time to time OFE may wish to use my

name and/or photograph in an OFE publication or in a publicity item submitted elsewhere by OFE for publication.

By signing “yes” below, I give OFE a release to use my name and/or photo.

A

lternatively, I also understand that I may deny such permission without in any way jeopardizing my

scholarship funding.

Yes, you may use my name and/or photo for publicity _________________________________________

Signature Date

No, you may not use my name and/or photo for publicity ________________________________________

Signature Date

C. Volunteer Assistance – If I am granted an OFE scholarship, I understand that I will be asked to volunteer from

time to time AT LEAST one event related to Out for Education and/or a fundraising event for an organization that

donates to OFE. I understand that an unexcused failure to volunteer may disqualify me from continued scholarship

support.

_________

________________________________

Signature Date

D. Communication – Please follow contact us on Facebook.com/OutForEducation or via email at

scholarshipapps@outforeducation.org if you have any questions or to update the college that needs to

receive your scholarship check.

E. References -- Two personal reference forms are enclosed with this package. Please select people who are not close friends

or relatives but who know you well and can tell us about your capabilities and achievements. They should send the completed

forms directly to the email address on the form, to be received no later than February 28, 2021. Please enter the names,

addresses, and telephone numbers of your references in the spaces below.

Reference 1:

Name ____________________________________________________________________________________

Address (Street/City/State/Zip) ________________________________________________________________

Telephone Number _________________________________________________________________________

Relationship to Applicant (e.g. Teacher, Counselor, Supervisor) __________________________________________

Reference 2:

Name ____________________________________________________________________________________

Address (Street/City/State/Zip) ________________________________________________________________

Telephone Number _________________________________________________________________________

Relationship to Applicant (e.g. Teacher, Counselor, Supervisor) __________________________________________

click to sign

signature

click to edit

Student Name ____________________________________________7

CHECKLIST FOR 2021 OFE SCHOLARS

_____ OFE application

_____ Biographical Essay

_____ Resume

_____ Two letters of reference (emailed directly to us by each reference)

_____ Current official school transcripts in a sealed envelope (PHYSICAL COPY MAILED IN)

Have questions on application? Please contact us on Facebook.org/outforeducation or

email scholarshipapps@outforeducation.org

TRANSCRIPT ARE TO BE MAILED TO:

OUT FOR EDUCATION

PO Box 667010

Houston, TX 77266-7010

Your checklist for a completed application, to be emailed no later than

February 28, 2021

Students will forfeit scholarship application if packet is not complete and no special

circumstances have been discussed with OFE PRIOR to deadline.

Please keep a copy of this entire application for your file. Again, remember that ALL

application materials are to be emailed to scholarshipapps@outforeducation.org

by the due

date – except for your current, official transcript, which MUS be postmarked by the

due date.

Student Name ____________________________________________8

OUT FOR EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIP REFERENCE FORM

PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) is part of an international organization with more than

460 chapters. PFLAG and HATCH (Houston Area Teen Coalition of Homosexuals) jointly created the

PFLAG/HATCH Youth Scholarship Foundation (PHYSF) in 1999, which offers a scholarship program to assist

worthy LGBTQ+ youth in the Houston-area in pursuing a college education. The scholarship program is for

Houston-area LGBTQ+ students who have demonstrated outstanding achievement while in high school or college.

In October 2013, PHYSF changed its name to Out for Education to better reflect the scholarship organization’s

mission and core constituency.

Please complete the following to assist us in evaluating this student’s application for this scholarship, which could

be as high as $2,500 per year, renewable for four years. The amount will depend on funding available when the

scholarships are granted. We thank you in advance for your time and effort. Completion at your earliest

convenience would be appreciated.

If you have any questions please feel free to email the following address: scholarshipapps@outforeducation.org.

Your Name

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Please briefly describe your relationship to the Student:

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Preferred Address (street/city/state/zip)

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Telephone number ___________________________________________________________________________

Email address_______________________________________________________________________________

Feel free to approach your answer to the questions on the following pages in a conversational way – as though you

were visiting with us about him/her. This is your chance to help us know this student as you do. And thank you

in advance for your support of this student.

Please email the completed form, to be received no later than February 28, 2021, to

SCHOLARSHIPAPPS@OUTFOREDUCATION.ORG

Student Name ____________________________________________9

1. How long have you known this student, what is your relationship with this student, and in what capacity

have you known him/her (e.g. through school, job, church, or as a family friend)?

___________________________________________________________________________________________

2. What do you know about this student that identifies him/her as a person with goals, leadership abilities,

commitment to overcoming his/her challenges, and his/her capacity to pursue them to completion?

___________________________________________________________________________________________

3. Our scholarships are specifically to further the education of LGBTQ+ individuals, many of whom have been

neglected or rejected by their families. If you are familiar with this student’s experience with family and friends,

how do you think the student has managed the coming out process and his or her relationship with family and friends?

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Student Name ____________________________________________10

4. How able is this student in securing funds for his or her college education through either help from family,

student loans, other scholarships, etc.?

___________________________________________________________________________________________

5. What else do you consider important for us to know about this student regarding family, school,

ex

tracurricular activities, or any other aspect that you consider relevant to mention?

___________________________________________________________________________________________

P

lease attach additional pages if you would like to include more information.

Consider setting us as your Smile Amazon Partner! Search Out For Education on the NPO search.

Student Name ____________________________________________11

OUT FOR EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIP REFERENCE FORM

PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) is part of an international organization with more than

460 chapters. PFLAG and HATCH (Houston Area Teen Coalition of Homosexuals) jointly created the

PFLAG/HATCH Youth Scholarship Foundation (PHYSF) in 1999, which offers a scholarship program to assist

worthy LGBTQ+ youth in the Houston-area in pursuing a college education. The scholarship program is for

Houston-area LGBTQ+ students who have demonstrated outstanding achievement while in high school or college.

In October 2013, PHYSF changed its name to Out for Education to better reflect the scholarship organization’s

mission and core constituency.

Please complete the following to assist us in evaluating this student’s application for this scholarship, which could

be as high as $2,500 per year, renewable for four years. The amount will depend on funding available when the

scholarships are granted. We thank you in advance for your time and effort. Completion at your earliest

convenience would be appreciated.

If you have any questions please feel free to email the following address: scholarshipapps@outforeducation.org.

Your Name

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Please briefly describe your relationship to the Student:

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Preferred Address (street/city/state/zip)

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Telephone number _________________________________________________________________________

Email address_____________________________________________________________________________

Feel free to approach your answer to the questions on the following pages in a conversational way – as though you

were visiting with us about him/her. This is your chance to help us know this student as you do. And thank you

in advance for your support of this student.

Please email the completed form, to be received no later than February 28, 2021, to

SCHOLARSHIPAPPS@OUTFOREDUCATION.ORG

Student Name ____________________________________________12