Weller Foundation Announces 2011 Scholarship Programs

WOODBURY — The Weller Foundation, Incorporated, a nonprofit organization that was established in 1962 to provide financial assistance to educational, charitable, and civic organizations, has announced its scholarship programs for the 2010-2011 academic year.

Full-time senior students enrolled at Newtown High School, Joel Barlow High School, Masuk High School, Shelton and Trumbull High Schools can apply. Specific rules, requirements, and scholarship application forms are available through each school’s guidance department. Scholarship programs will not be offered unless a minimum of three qualified applicants apply. All award recipients will be honored at the foundation’s Annual Awards Banquet in May to be held at Fairfield University. All scholarships will be paid directly to the college or university for deposit into the student’s account and will be awarded without regard to the student’s existing financial status.

$12,000 Barton L. Weller Scholarship Program: Established in 1978, the purpose of this $12,000 scholarship is to encourage academic excellence in a substantial five-month independent research or study project. Full-time seniors may now submit a one- to two-page proposal outlining the student’s project in any field of study to be developed during the 2010-2011 academic year. A student may submit only one proposal. Proposals must be received by the foundation by Monday, October 18.

Up to five finalists will be selected from all entries and will be notified on November 5. The project period will run from November 5 until March 30 with submission and documentation of the project due by March 30. All projects will be judged by a committee selected from outside the foundation’s Board of Trustees. The primary standards for judgment will be the degree, skill, and care the original proposal is developed into the final project. On April 14 the judges will convene to interview the participants and select the $12,000 scholarship recipient. The finalists, who have successfully completed and submitted their projects on time, will be invited to a dinner in their honor on May 2. At that time, the $12,000 scholarship will be presented to the students whose project is judged to be the best, and all runners-up will receive $400 for completion and timely submission of their projects.

$4,000 Weller Medical/Health Science Scholarship: Established in 1995, the purpose of this $4,000 scholarship is to encourage and financially assist a senior who has chosen a course of study in the field of medical/health sciences. Health care careers acceptable are nursing, therapy, medical technology, paramedics, and other licensed healthcare workers who provide one-on-one health care to people. Programs leading to MD or PhD degrees are not acceptable. Academic programs shall be a minimum of one year and a maximum of six years in duration with a maximum four years of payments.

Qualified applicants from the five eligible high schools shall be competing for one award. The award is a total of $4,000 or 50 percent of the cost of tuition for the training program, whichever is less. Specific payment schedules are outlined in the application program. Eligibility requirements include that applicants must have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 out of a 4.0 scale during the first three cumulative years of high school and a minimum SAT score of 1460 or an ACT score of 20.

A committee of the foundation’s trustees will rule on eligibility and interview/judge the award applicant’s on April 5. The award recipient will be chosen based upon the applicant’s ability to demonstrate a commitment to the medical/health field as a career and their potential success as a medical/health provider.

$4,000 Weller Education Scholarship: Established in 2002, the purpose of this $4,000 scholarship is to recognize and financially assist a senior planning to pursue a teaching career in public or private elementary or secondary schools.

Qualified applicants from the five eligible high schools will be competing for the award. Applicants must be accepted and subsequently enrolled at a four-year fully accredited college of university majoring in elementary or secondary education.

Eligibility requirements include that applicants must have a minimum grade point average of 3.5 out of a 4.0 scale or a class rank in the top 20 percent at the end of eleventh grade of high school, a minimum SAT score of 1710, and/or ACT score of 25. Students are required to complete the scholarship application form prior to March 1. A committee of the foundation’s trustees will rule on eligibility and interview/judge the award applicants on April 4. The award recipient will be chosen based upon the applicant’s ability to demonstrate a commitment to the education field as a career and their potential success as an elementary or secondary school teacher.

The Weller Foundation, Incorporated, will also release other award programs throughout the school year.