Pasadena City College Foundation to Announce 2014-2015 Scholarship Winners

The Pasadena City College Foundation will award more than $230,000 in scholarships to 225 PCC students during its annual scholarship awards ceremony to be held at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, December 3, at the Pasadena Hilton.

The Pasadena City College (PCC) Foundation, the fifth-largest community college foundation in California, will award more than $230,000 in scholarships to 225 Pasadena City College students during its annual scholarship awards ceremony to be held at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, December 3, at the Pasadena Hilton, located at 168 S. Los Robles Ave. in Pasadena.

More than 940 students competed for this year’s financial awards, which range up to $5,000 each and which include the President’s and Honors at Entrance scholarships. A 75-member scholarship committee – composed of PCC faculty, staff and management, Foundation board members, and Pasadena community representatives – selected the winning students on the basis of their grade point averages, community service and involvement, and personal statements.

“Nearly 70 percent of Pasadena City College students qualify for financial aid but traditional resources, such as federal and state aid, can’t meet the growing need,” said Bobbi Abram, executive director of the Pasadena City College Foundation. “As a result, students and families are increasingly looking to scholarships as a way to help pay for a college education.”

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In 2014, 66 percent of American families used grant or scholarship money, which covered an average of 31 percent of college costs, according to a national study conducted by Sallie Mae, the nation’s largest financial services company specializing in education.

“PCC Foundation scholarships help bridge the ‘affordability gap’ in higher education,’’ said John Gregory, Foundation board president. “They are a vital form of financial assistance that enables students to pursue the advanced education they need to enter the workforce well-positioned for success.”

PCC Foundation scholarships are funded by individual, corporate and foundation donors. Many of the funding sources were established through bequests and planned giving. The Adrienne Z. Westerbeck Family Trust and the Osher Initiative for California Community College Students are the foundation’s two largest scholarship underwriters, with each providing more than $100,000 in scholarships annually.

Since 2008, the Pasadena City College Foundation has awarded more than 4,200 scholarships totaling nearly $1.9 million to PCC students. In the 2013-2014 academic year, financial aid from all Foundation-administered programs – including the annual scholarship fund – totaled more than $628,000 and was awarded to nearly 1,000 students.