Deadline for 2013 Scholarships for Military Children fast approaching

  • Published
  • By Tammy L. Reed
  • DeCA marketing and mass communications specialist
FORT LEE, Va. --  In today's economy, it's hard to find the money for what many could consider the luxury of a higher education. Getting a scholarship to help pay for your investment can really help. That's why the Defense Commissary Agency wants to remind you that the Feb. 22 deadline for students to apply for this year's Scholarships for Military Children Program is fast approaching. All students interested and eligible to apply are encouraged to gather their materials and submit their applications as soon as possible.

One of the items needed includes an essay on the following topic: "Please discuss in detail how one of the first ladies (since 1933) has made an impact on a social issue in the United States."

Scholarship awards will be based on funds available, but the scholarship program awards at least $1,500 at each commissary. If there are no eligible applicants from a particular commissary, the funds designated for that commissary will be awarded as an additional scholarship at another store.

The Scholarships for Military Children Program was created in 2001 to recognize the contributions of military families to the readiness of the fighting force and to celebrate the role of the commissary in the military family community.

Applications are available in commissaries worldwide and online at http://www.militaryscholar.org. Applications must be turned in to a commissary by close of business Feb. 22. Commissaries can be found at www.commissaries.com, then click the link Locations at the top of the page.

To apply for a scholarship, the student must be a dependent, unmarried child, younger than 21 -- or 23, if enrolled as a full-time student at a college or university -- of a service member on active duty, reservist, guardsman, retiree or survivor of a military member who died while on active duty or survivor of a retiree. Eligibility is determined using the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System database.

Applicants should ensure that they, as well as their sponsor, are enrolled in the DEERS database and have a current military ID card. The applicant must also be planning to attend or already attending an accredited college or university, full time, in the fall of 2013 or be enrolled in a program of studies designed to transfer directly into a four-year program.

The scholarship program is administered by Fisher House Foundation, a nonprofit organization that provides assistance to service members and their families. Scholarship Managers, a national, nonprofit, scholarship-management services organization, manages and awards these military scholarships. If students have questions about the scholarship program application, call Scholarship Managers at 856-616-9311 or email them at militaryscholar@scholarshipmanagers.com.

No government funds are used to support the Scholarships for Military Children Program. Commissary vendors, manufacturers, brokers, suppliers and the general public donate money to fund the program. Every dollar donated goes directly to funding the scholarships. Since its inception, the program has awarded more than $10 million in scholarships to almost 7,000 children of service members.