[Iabs-talk] NFB Scholarships

[AZNOR99 at aol.com]

Dear Students, 

This article appeared in this month's Braille  Monitor.  It's not too early 
to get started.  Illinois has always been  well-represented in the NFB 
Scholarship Classes, so please share your talent and  intellect with the Committee by 
submitting an application so we can keep up the  tradition.

Ronza 



More Than Just Money for  School

The 2009 NFB Scholarship Program

by Anil Lewis

>From  the Editor: Anil Lewis is a member of the NFB board of directors and  
president
of the National Federation of the Blind of Georgia. Last year he  was 
appointed to
follow Peggy Elliott in chairing perhaps the most demanding  committee in the 
Federation.
>From the time the coming year's scholarship form  is available on the NFB 
Website
in early November, committee members are busy  encouraging their affiliates 
to promote
it widely within the state, answering  student questions, interviewing 
potential applicants,
and generally doing  what they can to encourage excellent students from 
seniors in
high school  through graduate school to complete the NFB scholarship 
application form
and  gather and submit the necessary accompanying documents.

In the spring the  committee meets for a grueling weekend of work to identify 
the
thirty  strongest applicants. When all thirty winners have been reached and  
confirmed,
the committee's job is to maintain contact with them to answer  questions and 
resolve
problems before the convention. During convention  committee members try to 
get to
know as many winners as possible so that they  can make wise decisions about 
which
student will receive which  scholarship.

As we go to press, the 2009 process is beginning. In the following  article 
Anil describes
the process and what participating in it can do for  students. This is what 
he says:

Last year was my first serving as chairperson of the National Federation  of 
the Blind
scholarship committee. Having been managed under such excellent  stewardship 
since
its expansion in 1984, the program presented a tremendous  challenge to me. 
Yet the
dedicated collaboration of veteran members of the  scholarship committee, 
along with
a few new members, made this challenging  task a fulfilling and enjoyable 
one. In
addition, the members of the 2008 NFB  scholarship class were accepting of my 
nervous
renderings and gracious  through my logistical learning curve. They are 
indeed an
impressive, dynamic  group of students, pursuing a diverse array of 
postsecondary
degrees, and I  am certain they will accomplish great things.

We set out again, this time  to select our scholarship class of 2009. On 
November
1, 2008, the application  process and forms for the NFB Scholarship Program 
were posted
on the Web at  <www.nfb.org>. The process can be initiated with an online  
application,
which we prefer, or you can download a printed application from  the site. 
Those who
do not have access to the Web can request and receive an  application by 
mail. In
addition to providing the application, the Website is  becoming a growing 
resource
for information about the NFB Scholarship  Program. You can access direct 
links to
information on past scholarship  winners, student resources, and lots more. 
This will
expand into a broader  resource for general scholarship information in the 
future.

We offer  thirty scholarships ranging from $3,000 to our $12,000 Kenneth  
Jernigan
Memorial Scholarship. All applicants for these scholarships (1) must  be 
legally blind
(which means both eyes); (2) must be pursuing or planning to  pursue a 
full-time,
postsecondary course of study in a degree program at a  United States 
institution
in the fall of the 2009-2010 academic year, except  that one scholarship may 
be given
to a person employed full-time while  attending school part-time; and, (3) if 
chosen,
applicants must participate  in the entire NFB national convention and in all 
scheduled
scholarship  program activities. In addition to the award, each winner will 
be brought
to  convention at Federation expense. The application deadline is March 31,  
2009.
Students should submit only one application. The scholarship committee  will 
decide
which scholarships the winners are eligible for and which each  will receive.

In order to be considered for a scholarship, students must  obtain and send 
proof
of legal blindness and the additional supporting  documentation required for 
a complete
application. This may be a print copy  of our Proof of Legal 
Blindnessformthathas
been completed and signed by a  medical doctor or a professional in eye care, 
such
as an optometrist or  ophthalmologist. Since other services offered to blind 
Americans
also require  such proof, it will be to any student's benefit to retain a 
master copy
of  this documentation. Alternative authoritative proof may be a letter 
stating  the
student is legally blind signed by the president of an NFB chapter or  
affiliate,
an itinerant teacher, a rehabilitation counselor, or some other  expert in 
blind rehabilitation.

The scholarships are not restricted to NFB members. There is no  requirement 
for an
applicant to be a member of the NFB in order to win a  scholarship. In fact, 
many
applicants were not even aware of our organization  before applying for an 
NFB scholarship.
However, although there is no  requirement for applicants to be members of 
the NFB,
we do expect winners to  be committed to the principles of promoting blind 
people
as contributing  members of society who can compete on terms of equality with 
their
sighted  peers.

The NFB Scholarship Program is our investment in the future of blind  people 
who demonstrate
scholastic aptitude, leadership, and service. If you  take a look at past 
winners,
you will see that they have a wide range of  academic pursuits and 
professional goals.
They are a cross section of race,  sex, and age. Winners are selected from 
around
the country. In fact, there is  diversity in all demographic areas. However, 
each
person chosen demonstrated  the ability to be successful academically, 
possessed leadership
ability, and  was committed to community or public service.
My advice to any potential  applicant is to read the application information 
carefully
and provide all of  the required information and supporting documentation. 
Many applications
are  incomplete, so the committee is unable to consider them fairly. Obtain  
references
from individuals that know you as a competent, able individual.  Some 
reference letters
are unconsciously negative or condescending; others  are unrealistically and 
inappropriately
laudatory. Applicants should choose  recommendation writers carefully. Most 
of all
focus on your essay. I  recommend that you write your essay in a Word 
document, edit
it, proofread  it, then cut and paste the finished essay into the online form 
or transfer
it  to the print application form. The essay should be you talking about your 
 life,
how you live it, and how you'd like to live it. Committee members give  it a 
great
deal of attention.
The scholarship committee, consisting of  successful blind college graduates, 
reviews
all applications and selects the  top thirty applicants as the scholarship 
class of
2009. These thirty  scholarship winners will be notified of their selection 
by telephone
no later  than June 1. Again, you need submit only one application to be 
considered
for  all of the scholarships for which you are eligible. The scholarship  
committee
will decide during the annual convention which award will be given  to each 
winner.

The NFB Scholarship Program offers more than just money for school. It is  an 
opportunity
for personal growth and ongoing professional development. Each  scholarship 
winner
will be brought to the NFB national convention in Detroit,  Michigan, July 3 
through
8, at the NFB's expense. The convention is one of  the most valuable gifts we 
give
to each winner. We expect you will find, as  others have before you, that the 
NFB
national convention is a great deal of  fun, offers truly beneficial 
networking at
the highest level, answers  questions you have always wanted to ask, and is 
as big
a prize as the  scholarship check winners receive. Furthermore, we give our 
winners
an  opportunity to participate in the development of public policies that 
affect  blind
people by assisting them to attend our Washington Seminar. We offer  them the 
opportunity
to give back to other blind people by serving as mentors  to future 
scholarship winners
as members of our Scholarship Alumni Program.  The NFB scholarship is the 
gift that
keeps on giving and is more than just  money for school. This November blind 
students
are invited to go to  <www.nfb.org/scholarships>, to begin their quest for 
this  national
scholarship award. Questions may be emailed to the chairman at 
_scholarships at nfb.org_ (mailto:scholarships at nfb.org) .


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