Scholarships and Grants Help UWF Students Maximize Potential
By Connie Marse, University Marketing Communications
Georgia Adams is the granddaughter of sharecroppers. Her family worked other people’s farms to support themselves, just barely. When she was old enough she helped on the farm, too. She was home-schooled from kindergarten through grade 12 and never expected to become the first in her family to go to college.
Miguel Aldahondo arrived in Pensacola from Puerto Rico at age 12. He spoke only rudimentary English, but he was already dreaming big. He wanted to pursue a professional singing career, and he had a plan in mind to start him up that improbable road.
Different backgrounds, different people. Yet, ultimately, so similar. Despite their challenging circumstances, both students landed at the University of West Florida and soon discovered that they had taken the road pointing to success. Financial aid paved the way. Adams and Aldahondo are among the 65 percent of UWF students who receive financial assistance—scholarships, student loans, grants and internships—to help pay for their college classes.
Adams, whose aid included a federal Pell Grant and internships, graduated spring 2010 with double majors in international studies and communication arts and was named Outstanding Communication Arts graduate. After a stint as campus newspaper editor and a year of study abroad, she won a prestigious Dow Jones editing internship and is well on her way to a career in journalism.
“I’m confident that I have a bright future ahead of me,” she said, “and this is in large part because of the experiences I’ve had as a college student at the University of West Florida.”
Aldahondo was the first Argo Scholar designee to enroll at UWF and is now completing his freshman year. He was among the first four Pensacola High School sophomores selected in 2007 to receive mentoring and then tuition, room, board and books to attend UWF upon graduation from high school. He also took advantage of his high academic standing in his graduating class and received a “Top Five” scholarship as well as a talent-based music scholarship.
“I love the school,” Aldahondo said. “It has that home feel to it.” Scholarships, he believes, benefit students in many ways, allowing them to focus on academics as well as build self esteem. He says he may take another shot at earning a coveted spot on American Idol. He auditioned at 17 and was told he should try again later. Aldahondo thinks he has the talent, and thanks to UWF, the musical training to make the grade.
There were 5,770 scholarships worth $11,209,589 awarded to UWF students this past academic year. More than eight million of those dollars were Florida Bright Futures, earned and brought to UWF by high-achieving students. In addition, there were $2.4 million in institutional scholarships, such as the “Top Five,” awarded. Eighty students landing the top five academic positions in their high schools throughout the state, including Aldahondo, took advantage of UWF’s “Top Five” offer.
Foundation scholarships, primarily from endowment funds, amounted to nearly $650,000 with 267 of those scholarships going to “first generation” college students. Robert Byrd federal scholarships totaled $30,750.
For more information on scholarships and other financial assistance available at UWF visit uwf.edu/finaid/scholarships.cfm. For more information on how UWF nourishes potential, visit uwf.edu/impact.