McConnell Foundation Scholarship Program

Scholarship Sponsored by McConnell Foundation

The McConnell Foundation Scholars Program supports students who are likely to bring about positive change in their communities. Recipients are provided with a $34,000 scholarship, mentoring, and programs for personal and professional growth. Ideal candidates have significant financial need, are among the first generation in their family to pursue higher education, are committed to college as their pathway to success, and have already demonstrated the values of giving back and caring for others. Special consideration is given for those who have overcome significant challenges such as homelessness, participation in the foster-care system, or multi-generational poverty. The McConnell Foundation invests in students not just to help them as individuals, but also to help those individuals make things better for their families, their communities, and the greater society. The most important personal characteristic we look for is concern for the well-being of others. Academic achievement and success are important, but it takes more than those. To be a McConnell Scholar is to use your academic and professional success to help make things better for others as well as for yourself.

Have questions? You are welcome to contact us at [email protected]. Counselors, teachers, advisors, and academic preparation program professionals are encouraged to contact Dave to arrange a visit, presentation, or Zoom meeting for your students who may be eligible for The McConnell Scholars Program. Dave will be happy to work with you to tailor a presentation suited to your students’ specific needs. Topics can include general scholarship search and application tips, writing effective personal statements and essays, overcoming internal resistance, and specific advice on how to apply to The McConnell Scholars Program.

Eligibility Requirements

Students who wish to apply to The McConnell Scholars Program must meet all of the following conditions for their application to be considered. Please read them carefully before starting your application.

You may apply to The McConnell Foundation Scholars Program if you meet the following requirements:

• Residency in our service area
  • You live or attend high school in our service area of Modoc, Shasta, Siskiyou, Tehama, or Trinity County, or you attend Big Valley High School in Lassen County or Hoopa Valley High School in Humboldt County, which serve students in our service area, or
  • You live in our service area and will transfer from Shasta College or College of the Siskiyous to a qualified four-year university in the coming fall
• You will start at a college or university in the fall term of the upcoming academic year
  • You may not apply if you currently attend college. Concurrent enrollment in high school and college courses is fine.
  • Students who are currently attending Shasta College or College of the Siskiyous may apply by the application due date of the same year they transfer to a qualified four-year university for the following fall term.
  • You may not already have a bachelor’s degree.
• You will enter a qualified college or university
  • The following colleges and universities qualify for McConnell scholarship funds:
    • All public community colleges such as Shasta College, College of the Siskiyous, Klamath College, etc.
    • All California State Universities such as CSU Chico, Humboldt State University, Sonoma State University, etc.
    • All University of California campuses such as UC Davis, UC Berkeley, etc.
    • All public universities within the United States.
    • Many private universities also qualify. For a detailed explanation and partial list, please see below.
• Financial need
  • Your Student Aid Index (SAI) from your Free Application for Federal Student Aid or California Dream Act Application  is $6,655 or less.
• You are not a “disqualified individual”
  • You may not be directly related to any McConnell Foundation Board of Directors or Program Services staff, or current volunteer selection committee member. 
• Undocumented students who meet the above criteria are welcome to apply
• The McConnell Scholars Program application is demanding, but don’t let that intimidate you! Many students have submitted high-quality applications over the years, and you can too. The following tips can help.
• Start early! Many students wait until the last day to start and submit their applications. This is a risky strategy that can result in rushed, lower-quality essays, and leaves no time to fix any technical problems that may occur. Leave yourself plenty of time!
• Check the eligibility criteria carefully. The application is a lot of work, and you don’t want to waste your time and effort if you don’t qualify. This happens to a handful of students every year. Usually, it’s because their Student Aid Indexes (SAI) (Formerly EFC) exceed our limit or they plan to attend colleges or universities that don’t qualify for McConnell funding. Don’t let that happen to you.
• Don’t try to complete the application all at once. The essays require a lot of self-reflection and thought, so take your time. A little at a time is usually more effective than one marathon session.
• Tell us a story! Some students make the mistake of just listing the qualities they think we care about. “I am determined, I am a hard worker, I care about my community…” If you are a hard worker, tell us a story or provide an example from your life that illustrates that. We want to get to know you as best we can, so make it personal. It’ll help us remember you!
• Have someone else check your work. While we don’t make our selections based on grammar or spelling, it does make a good impression if you make every effort to submit a high-quality product.
• Make sure you upload the correct documents: your transcript and your Student Aid Report or California Aid Report. These must be in .pdf or .jpg format and nothing else. Every year, we have students who submit the wrong documents, blank documents, and documents in the wrong format.
• Submit your application before the deadline. We review applications as they come in, and we can help you fix any potential problems if you leave us enough time. We can’t do that for applications submitted close to the deadline.
• Give yourself a break! We’ve never had a “perfect” application, and we don’t expect you to be perfect, either. Just do the best you can, and no matter what happens, you can be proud of yourself for being brave enough to give it a good shot.
• Good luck!