The Association of American Geographers is pleased to announce a national scholarship program for community college students. Two $1,000 scholarships will be awarded to students from community colleges, junior colleges, city colleges, or similar two-year educational institutions who will be transferring as geography majors to four year colleges and universities. These scholarships are funded by Darrel Hess, coauthor of the textbook Physical Geography: A Landscape Appreciation by McKnight and Hess, published by Prentice Hall. Deadline: December 31
The award consists of a scholarship to be used for any educational expenses in the amount of $1,000 and a formal certificate of merit. The formal announcement of the award will take place at the annual meeting of the AAG.
Eligibility: You are eligible to apply if you are a student currently enrolled at a US community college, junior college, city college, or similar two-year educational institution at the time you submit your application. You must also have completed at least two transfer courses in geography and plan to transfer to a four-year institution as a geography major during the coming academic year.
Criteria: Selection will be based on the overall quality of the application, scholastic excellence and academic promise. Financial need will also be considered. The selection committee will observe the purposes and preferences noted above when evaluating proposals. Two awards of $1,000 will be made annually. Awards may not be made in years when funds are insufficient or proposals are not suitable.
Applications: Completed applications consist of the following materials:
1. One-page scholarship application. You may download the form here: www.aag.org/Grantsawards/hessform.rtf
2. A two page personal statement describing the applicant’s academic and personal background, as well as the applicant’s academic goals and interest in pursuing geography as a major at a baccalaureate institution.
3. Two letters of recommendation from college instructors. If submitted digitally, these letters should be sent from the instructor’s own email address with the subject line as follows: “AAG Hess Scholarship – Student Name.” If submitted in hard copy, recommenders are asked to provide letters in sealed envelopes with their signature across the flap.
4. A copy of the applicant’s current unofficial transcripts. Finalists may be asked to submit official transcripts before the screening committee makes its final decision.
Digital submissions are encouraged. Please submit the materials in an email attachment to grantsawards@aag.org with AAG Hess Scholarship as the subject line. Alternately, hard copies of applications can be sent to Association of American Geographers, attn: AAG Hess Scholarship, 1710 Sixteenth Street NW, Washington, DC 20009-3198. Final notifications are expected early-to-mid summer of 2006.