September 3, 2019
The Community Foundation of New Jersey (CFNJ) today announced that it is granting a total of $1,268,183 in scholarships to 279 students for the Fall 2019 term. The scholarship awards come from funds CFNJ manages on behalf of philanthropic families and companies.
These funds vary widely in their emphasis, focusing on different fields of study, specific schools (such as students graduating from Chatham High School or those attending Seton Hall University), the fundholder’s values, and even the relationship of the recipients to specific companies, communities, or under-served groups. Recipients of CFNJ scholarships are currently attending more than 100 colleges, universities, high schools, or trade schools.
“What motivates so many Community Foundation fundholders to provide scholarships is the ability to make education a reality for someone or many people in need,” said Hans Dekker, CFNJ’s president. “Our scholarship team handles all aspects of the scholarship, from criteria to applications to awards. We remove the administrative burden so that New Jersey philanthropists can focus on what matters most to them: making a real difference.”
Despite this extraordinary generosity – CFNJ grants more than $1 million in scholarships every year – there is still tremendous need among New Jersey’s aspiring learners. In 2017, CFNJ launched a Scholarship Opportunity Fund with the goal of making education a reality for even more deserving New Jerseyans. With dollars raised from this new fund, CFNJ made a $5,000 grant to Per Scholas Newark, a workforce development nonprofit, to provide emergency assistance for those who are pursuing education and employment in the technology sector. Per Scholas Newark students often face a number of socio-economic challenges outside of the classroom that may hinder their ability to learn, so this funding is intended to lessen the impact of transportation costs, last-minute childcare, personal health needs, and immediate housing costs.
In 2019, those with donor advised funds – and not just traditional scholarship funds – began to more intentionally support New Jerseyans’ educational pursuits. For example, fundholders have supported Girls Who Code, the national nonprofit that is working to close the gender gap in technology and build a pipeline of female engineers. Others provided funding to Frost Valley YMCA so that children from Newark could spend a portion of their summers learning in the great outdoors.
“Scholarships, like classrooms themselves, come in many different forms,” explained Faith Krueger, CFNJ’s COO and scholarship leader. “We have made a special emphasis over the years to ensure that we are serving all education types and we’re seeing philanthropic-minded New Jerseyans respond – whether it’s helping young women learn to code or giving children from at-risk communities the chance to go to camp. If there’s an opportunity to learn, we can leverage effective philanthropy to make it a reality.”
To learn more about scholarship funds at CFNJ or to create your own, please call Faith Krueger at 973-267-5533.
About the Community Foundation of New Jersey
The Community Foundation of New Jersey educates and engages the people of New Jersey on the power of charitable giving to effect positive change in our communities. For 40 years, the Community Foundation team has counseled New Jersey families and businesses on how to use philanthropic funds to target and increase the impact of their giving in the areas that matter most to them. More than 1,100 Legacy Funds and Donor Advised Funds grant tens of millions of dollars each year, enabling the Community Foundation to launch its own Changemaker Projects that address critical, overlooked challenges. The Community Foundation’s funds currently hold over $425 million in charitable assets and granted more than $66 million in 2018 to charitable work in New Jersey and beyond.