Tech offers 50 new scholarships

Richmond Times Dispatch
Published: July 6, 2008

Beginning in fall 2009, Virginia Tech plans to offer up to 50 full scholarships annually to low-income Virginia high school students with strong academic records.

The scholarships, which cover tuition and fees as well as room and board, will be renewable each year as long as the student maintains a 3.0 grade point, or B, average, school officials said.

At Tech’s current estimated cost of attendance, each scholarship would be worth at least $54,696 over four years.

Barry W. Simmons, director of scholarships and financial aid at Tech, said the goal of the new Virginia Tech Presidential Scholarship is to increase the number of applicants from low-income Virginia families and increase the diversity of the student body.

More than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students are enrolled at Tech.

Tech hopes to award up to 50 of the scholarships annually and eventually support 200 students on campus. Two hundred scholarships would cost Tech more than $2.7 million annually.

To be eligible for a scholarship, a student must be a Virginia resident, graduate from a state high school, and be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident; show evidence of leadership potential; and demonstrate a strong academic background.

School officials said they also will factor in whether candidates for one of the competitive scholarships would be the first in their family to attend college.