It is with great pleasure that the National Association of Veterans Upward Bound Project Personnel announces its national scholarship competition. Veterans Upward Bound participants are invited to compete for a scholarship award for the 2023-2024 academic year. Winners will be presented with a Certificate of Merit. Payment of the scholarship will be provided once proof of enrollment and attendance is received for the following fall semester. Checks will be made payable to the winners. 

The following information includes all materials necessary to apply for a scholarship. Each institution is encouraged to conduct an internal competition to determine the most worthy applicant. However, only the official NAVUB Scholarship application and required supporting documentation may be submitted for the national competition. 

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA:
 

• The nominee must be a present or former participant of the Veterans Upward Bound Project from which the nomination is being made and must be admitted to or currently enrolled in an institution of postsecondary education, seeking an undergraduate degree. 

• The nominee must be nominated by a NAVUB staff person of a current member program (institutional dues paid by the required NAVUB membership date). 

• The project Director, if different from the nominator, will approve the nomination, attest to the nominee’s good standing, and certify that the project is an active member of NAVUB. 

• Prior to receipt of the award, the VUB Director of the scholarship recipient will provide NAVUB with verification of the nominee's actual enrollment in a postsecondary institution in the following fall. 

• All required application materials and supporting documentation must be completed as directed and postmarked or emailed by the deadline (to be announced later in the year). Incomplete or late applications will not be considered. 

• Projects may send only one nomination

SELECTION:
Each application will be reviewed and rated by members of the Scholarship Commission.

The application will be scored on six categories:
 

1. nomination letter

2. ​recommendation letter

3. financial need

4. activities/achievements (e.g., honors and awards, public service and community involvement, VUB activities)

5. academics

6. nominee's essay 

Each category will be rated on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest. The results will be tabulated to determine the winners, and the names will be submitted to the Education Chair and the President of NAVUB, following verification of the winners’ eligibility to receive the award.

MATERIALS TO BE SUBMITTED:
To be considered, the NAVUB Scholarship Application must include:
 

1. Completed Scholarship Application form with nominee information (including achievements), nominator information, and project information

2. A color photo of the nominee suitable for publication in the NAVUB newsletter

3. Nominee's essay

4. Nomination letter (from VUB staff person)*

5. Letter of recommendation (from someone who knows the student well)*

 
Letters must contain nominee’s name and writer’s contact information 
The nominator must write a letter in support of his/her student, including: 
 

1. how the nominator knows the nominee 

2. the circumstances of the nominee's financial need 

3. the nominee's activities and achievements (community/public service, military and/or other honors/awards, VUB activities and awards)

4. the nominee's educational progress and commitment to completion of PSE

5. why nominee is deserving 

6. any other relevant information. 

* Recommendation Letter should address the same items as the Nomination Letter.

Prior to receipt of the award, the Director of the winner’s program will provide the NAVUB Treasurer with proof of the nominee's attendance in a program of post-secondary education for the fall semester. The scholarship will not be awarded to the nominee until verification of attendance is received. 

The nominee is responsible for working with the nominator to ensure that all required materials are provided. This includes the nominee writing an original essay and securing a letter of recommendation from someone other than the nominator. 

The Director, if different from the nominator, will verify his/her approval of the nomination, certify that the nominee is in good standing, or has left the project in good standing, and that the project is an active member of NAVUB.

All materials must be submitted by August 20, 2023.
 

Questions may be addressed to:

Gerard Laborde

gerard.laborde@selu.edu

(504) 654-9158