SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) and Scholarship America are now accepting applications for the 2017 Wells Fargo Veterans Scholarship and Wells Fargo Veterans Emergency Grant Programs. Wells Fargo has committed $2 million over a four year period to fund the programs and help veterans and their families to successfully integrate back into civilian life. Since both programs launched in 2016, Wells Fargo and Scholarship America have awarded 22 scholarships and 25 emergency grants to support education and vocational training for veterans and the spouses of disabled veterans.
Veteran Amare Lovely was one of the 22 scholarship recipients in 2016. He served nearly five years as a Navy Corpsman, receiving thirteen Command Certifications of Excellence. He organized community diversity inclusion programs and mentored underprivileged children. Amare deployed to Afghanistan where he sustained injuries from the blast of an improvised explosive device (IED) for which he was awarded the Purple Heart in 2013.
“Being a veteran who suffers from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and a full time student juggling raising a family, my life can be pretty stressful and overwhelming at times,” said Lovely. “The Wells Fargo Veteran Scholarship enabled me to focus on my schooling and family and not on the pressures of tuition, books, and fees. I am on pace to graduate next fall and I owe a lot of thanks to Wells Fargo for their support.”
Scholarship America, one of the nation’s largest providers of postsecondary educational assistance programs, and Wells Fargo have worked together since 1991, starting with the Children of Employee Scholarship Program in 1991. Both collaborated on the application and selection process for the scholarship and emergency grants, using best practices of the highest quality postsecondary educational aid programs.
“American veterans are important to the strength of our country and our company, and we want to make sure they feel prepared for the transition back to civilian life,” said Jerry Quinn, Wells Fargo Military & Veteran Program Manager. “Our investment in Scholarship America will help fill some of the financial gaps by providing scholarships and emergency aid to our veterans and their families to set them on a course to success.”
“Wells Fargo’s Veterans Scholarship and Emergency Grant Programs offer exciting opportunities for veterans,” said Robert C. Ballard, president and CEO, Scholarship America. “Unmet financial needs can derail educational progress. Wells Fargo’s programs are helping fill funding gaps so veterans can complete post-secondary education or training and succeed in civilian life and work.”
The Wells Fargo Veterans Scholarship Program
Applications for the scholarship program are being accepted through February 28, 2016. Awards will be made to honorably discharged veterans or spouses of disabled veterans who are high school or GED graduates. Renewable scholarships for up to $7,000 per year will be granted, determined by financial need and consideration of academic performance, work experience, leadership and community service, and challenges to completing a postsecondary program. Each award renewal will increase by $1,000 over the previous year to encourage program completion for each recipient.
Visit www.scholarsapply.org/wellsfargoveterans for more information and to apply.
The Wells Fargo Veterans Emergency Grant Program
Emergency grants are available on an ongoing basis for eligible veterans who are enrolled in postsecondary education and experience unexpected financial difficulties that might cause them to drop out of school. Grants will be available for a one-time distribution up to $1,000 based on the cost of the emergency need, such as rent, utilities, daycare and medical expenses. Visit www.scholarsapply.org/wellsfargoveteransemergency for more information and to apply.
More information about Wells Fargo’s support of service members, veterans, and their families is available at wellsfargo.com/military/veterans.
About Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) is a diversified, community-based financial services company with $1.9 trillion in assets. Founded in 1852 and headquartered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo provides banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance through more than 8,600 locations, 13,000 ATMs, the internet (wellsfargo.com) and mobile banking, and has offices in 42 countries and territories to support customers who conduct business in the global economy. With approximately 269,000 team members, Wells Fargo serves one in three households in the United States. Wells Fargo & Company was ranked No. 27 on Fortune’s 2016 rankings of America’s largest corporations. Wells Fargo’s vision is to satisfy our customers’ financial needs and help them succeed financially. In 2015, Wells Fargo donated $281.3 million to 16,300 nonprofits, ranking No. 3 on the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s rankings of the top corporate cash philanthropists. Wells Fargo team members volunteered 1.86 million hours in 2015, serving more than 40,000 nonprofits. Wells Fargo’s corporate social responsibility efforts are focused on three priorities: economic empowerment in underserved communities, environmental sustainability, and advancing diversity and social inclusion. News, insights and perspectives from Wells Fargo are also available at Wells Fargo Stories.
About Scholarship America
For nearly 60 years, Scholarship America has worked directly with students, parents, colleges, businesses and communities to empower people to achieve their educational goals. As the nation’s largest private education support organization, having distributed over $3.5 billion to more than 2.2 million students, Scholarship America is now working to further engage the private sector to support programs and policies that advance equity in postsecondary education and help students overcome barriers to access, persistence and attainment. More information is available at scholarshipamerica.org.