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PROGRAMS |
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The Foundation carries out its mission through two programs designed to provide higher education and professional guidance to those who deserve a helping hand.
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Abramson Scholarship |
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"Do you know what it means to want an education so badly that you will overcome any obstacle just to make it through high school and into college? We see what it means every year through the amazing D.C. public high school seniors who apply to the Abramson Foundation for scholarship assistance."
William F. Causey
Board President
1999-2001
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In the past, the Abramson Foundation has presented annual scholarship awards to graduating Washington DC public high school seniors to supplement the financial aid packages they receive from four year accredited colleges. The scholarships helped provide financial support through the first year of college. Beginning in the 2010-2011 academic year, rather than taking on new Abramson scholars, the Foundation extended scholarships to those previous recipients who continued to meet the Foundation’s criteria. Excited at the prospect of being able to follow students from their first days in college to their graduations, the Board has chosen to follow this practice of providing scholarship continuity in the future.
Awards granted to high school seniors are based on economic need and conditioned on their acceptance into and attendance of a qualifying college program. Students must have solid academic records and must have demonstrated a commitment to community service. Guidance counselors in the DC public schools and other community institutions help the Foundation’s scholarship committee identify candidates for awards. Once they become college students, awardees may reapply annually for additional scholarships. To receive subsequent awards, students must continue to do well academically and to demonstrate their ongoing commitment to their educations and to their communities.
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Mentoring |
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Abramson Foundation mentors serve as listeners, advisors, cheerleaders and friends to recipients of Abramson Scholarships. Many awardees have not had the opportunity to venture outside of their immediate neighborhoods before heading off to college. Often, they do not have close relatives who have preceded them into higher education. Being a groundbreaker can be lonely and bewildering. Mentors are Board members or friends of the Foundation who volunteer their time to help these students find their way to success in their academic careers – troubleshooting when the need arises and generally providing a wide range of guidance and advice. At Foundation gatherings, our scholarship recipients have spoken compellingly about the importance of the Foundation’s mentors in their lives. In recent years, some previous scholarship recipients, who have graduated from college and returned to Washington DC, have joined the Foundation’s mentoring program. It is powerful and inspiring to have alumni from the program serve as role models and mentors for new scholarship students!
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