DECEMBER 13, 2022 – Applications have now opened for the Scholarships for Military Children program for academic year 2023 – 2024.
The program, entering its 23rd year, recognizes the contributions of military families to the readiness of the fighting force and celebrates the commissary’s role in enhancing military quality of life. Fisher House Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping service members, veterans and their families, administers the program. The program has awarded more than $22 million to 12,812 students, selected from a pool of nearly 113,000 applicants.
“The Defense Commissary Agency is again honored, for the 23rd year in a row now, to team with Fisher House Foundation and industry to promote this extraordinary opportunity for the children of military families to pursue their dreams in higher education,” said Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Michael R. Saucedo, senior enlisted advisor to the DeCA director.
For scholarship year 2023-24, Fisher House Foundation will award 500 scholarship grants of $2,000 each. The selection process will begin immediately following the application deadline of Feb. 15, at 11:59 p.m. PST.
Funding for the program comes from commissary business partners and other contributions to Fisher House Foundation designated specifically for the scholarship programs.
“We thank the Defense Commissary Agency for partnering with us to provide scholarships to our youngest members of the military community,” said Ken Fisher, chairman and CEO of Fisher House Foundation. “We also appreciate the donors and supporters who value how important our military families are and support them through our scholarship program.”
Selection qualifications are straightforward. Requirements include completing the application; submission of the student’s official transcript indicating a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above on a 4.0 scale for high school applicants, or college transcript indicating a cumulative minimum GPA of 2.5 or above on a 4.0 scale for students already enrolled in college; and a 500-word essay. The subject of this year’s essay is listed at the militaryscholar.org website under “Scholarships for Military Children.”
Eligibility for the program 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 dependent ID card. The applicant must also be planning to attend or already be attending an accredited college or university, full time, in the fall of 2023 or be enrolled in a program of studies designed to transfer directly into a four-year program.
Applicants who are awarded a full scholarship to attend a college or university or receive an appointment to one of the service academies or affiliated preparatory schools are not eligible to receive funds from this program. A full scholarship is usually defined as one that provides for payment of tuition, books, lab fees and other expenses.
All rules and requirements for the Scholarships for Military Children program, as well as links to frequently asked questions are available at militaryscholar.org.
Fisher House Foundation also has a free, easy to use custom scholarship search engine tailored to military families called “Scholarships for Service.” It’s available for both mobile devices and desktop computers at militaryscholar.org.
About DeCA: The Defense Commissary Agency operates a worldwide chain of commissaries providing groceries to military personnel, retirees and their families in a safe and secure shopping environment. Commissaries provide a military benefit, saving authorized patrons thousands of dollars annually on their purchases compared to similar products at commercial retailers. The discounted prices include a 5-percent surcharge, which covers the costs of building new commissaries and modernizing existing ones. A core military family support element, and a valued part of military pay and benefits, commissaries contribute to family readiness, enhance the quality of life for America’s military and their families, and help recruit and retain the best and brightest men and women to serve their country.
By Mike Perron, DeCA public affairs specialist
Courtesy Story
Defense Commissary Agency