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Scholarships

Since 1948, the Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley has awarded over $27.3 million in scholarships!

Apply for Scholarships

The scholarship application closed on January 24, 2025. Applicants will be notified of award decisions in May.

Please mark your calendar to apply next year!

Scholarship Program

The Community Foundation Scholarship Program consists of separate scholarship funds created by individual donors who establish specific criteria for the administration of their scholarships. Such criteria must be consistent with overall Community Foundation policy.

Scholarships are available to local students who will attend an accredited post-secondary institution within the United States of America on a full-time basis.

To learn more about the various scholarship funds administered by the Community Foundation and its donors, please visit the Scholarship Fund profile pages.

The Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley is proud to administer four generous scholarships sponsored by the Dunham Foundation. To learn more about these scholarships and the criteria, please visit the Scholarship Fund profile page.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Primary Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must complete their high school education during, at the conclusion of, or prior to the current academic year as follows.

  • High School Diploma from a public, private, parochial, or online school
  • Home-Schooled High School Education
  • General Educational Development (GED) certificate or state certificate

Applicants must attend an accredited post-secondary institution within the United States of America during the upcoming academic year.

Applicants must pursue studies (career/technical/vocational, undergraduate, graduate, etc.) on a full-time basis during the upcoming academic year.

Applicants must maintain a permanent address located within the Community Foundation Scholarship Program service area (a few exceptions apply).

  • A permanent address is usually a parent’s home or the address listed on a driver’s license, voters registration card, FAFSA, etc. It is most likely NOT a temporary on/off college campus address.
  • The Community Foundation Scholarship Program service area includes the following areas within the State of Illinois:

Give your gift of time and see what it means to the people you impact. Helping others is what life is all about.

Neal Ormond

Donor & Fund Advisor

I am incredibly grateful for the generosity of the Zari Foundation Scholarship and the Community Foundation in supporting my education. I am majoring in mechanical engineering with a concentration in aerospace engineering at the Rose-Hulman Institue of Technology. In my spare time, I volunteer on campus, in the community and I’m also the principal violist in the symphony orchestra. I hope to make an impact on the next chapter of space exploration by eventually working at a groundbreaking aerospace company such as SpaceX or NASA.

Taytum Newell

Albert M. Zari Scholarship Recipient

Education is important to us. We support causes that touch our lives and align with our values. We believe in paying it forward. We are here for a short time,, and it is the next generation that will take on what we leave behind.

Michelle Emanuel

Donor and Past Scholarship Recipient

YEP was a great experience to have in high school. I became a more confident person, someone with a lot more perspective. Coming from a small school, YEP allowed me to branch out into my community, meet students from other schools, and learn about their backgrounds. I made some great friends and still keep in touch with them today.

Abby Vagnoni

YEP Alumni

YEP has made me realize the importance of being involved in my community, and how to make a difference. There are a lot of problems in the world but if we can do everything that we can to help the world will become a better place. YEP has helped me realize this and encouraged me to help more people in the future.

Madi Porter

YEP Member

Grant funds from the Community Foundation helped provide updated technology. These upgrades were transformative. By creating new time saving processes, it turned us into a more efficient organization.

Marie Wilkinson Food Pantry

Grantee

Being a part of the Community Foundation scholarship committee is the highlight of my year. For many, a scholarship from the CFFRV is the reason they are able to continue reaching for their dreams and changing the future of our world. I hope each recipients knows just how inspirational they are to those of us who are lucky enough to read their stories.

Jessica Breugelmans

Scholarship Committee Member and Board Member

Give your gift of time and see what it means to the people you impact. Helping others is what life is all about.

Neal Ormond

Donor & Fund Advisor

I am incredibly grateful for the generosity of the Zari Foundation Scholarship and the Community Foundation in supporting my education. I am majoring in mechanical engineering with a concentration in aerospace engineering at the Rose-Hulman Institue of Technology. In my spare time, I volunteer on campus, in the community and I’m also the principal violist in the symphony orchestra. I hope to make an impact on the next chapter of space exploration by eventually working at a groundbreaking aerospace company such as SpaceX or NASA.

Taytum Newell

Albert M. Zari Scholarship Recipient

Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley

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