The Southern Delaware Alliance for Racial Justice (SDARJ) will award up to twelve $500.00 scholarships to Sussex County graduating seniors for the 2019-2020 academic year. Scholarships will be awarded on the bases of demonstrated concern for furthering racial understanding and justice, citizenship and service in the school community, and financial need. Applicants must be currently attending a public high school in Sussex County and planning to attend a two-year or four-year non-profit college or university in the fall.
“We designed the scholarship program to lend support to students who understand that racial justice requires a commitment to community involvement and action,” said Gwendolyn Miller, Chair of the SDARJ Education Committee. “Students applying for a scholarship must submit an essay or a work of art on the theme ‘A Just World’.”
The work of art may take the form of dance choreography, film production, poetry or prose, music composition, photography, or visual arts (two or three dimensional). The work requires a title and date of completion, together with a statement of no more than 100 words about how the work relates to the theme. The applicant must be the sole creator of the piece.
The successful applicant will also demonstrate understanding of racial justice through action, such as peer mentoring or participation in SDARJ events during the senior year in high school. Alliance events include forums and town hall meetings held in Lewes, book and film group discussions held in Georgetown and Lewes, and enrichment modules on African American literature and history cosponsored by Pathways to Success or local libraries. Other eligible events will be posted on the SDARJ website.
To be eligible for a scholarship award, the applicant must be a resident of Sussex County and a student in good standing with a grade point average of 2.50 or higher. Scholarship awards may be used for study in any qualifying institution, regardless of location. The deadline for submitting an application is March 29, and successful candidates will be notified by May 3.
More specific information on eligibility and requirements as well as the application form can be obtained from high school counselors, the online version of the Delaware Scholarship Compendium 2018-19 https://scholarships.delawaregoestocollege.org, or by going to sdarj.org.
