Proud Scholars Scholarship Fund
Our mission is simple, and our dreams are big: provide scholarships to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) students in the Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky area to enable them to achieve their educational and career goals. Your donation goes directly to the establishment of this scholarship fund and to the future generations of LGBT professionals and community leaders.
Why a scholarship fund specifically for LGBT students? In the age of “It Gets Better”, we want to help these students successfully transition from high school into a higher education program by easing one of the burdens many of them face – the money for tuition. LGBT students have the additional challenge of coming out in a new environment, and finding the safe spaces where they can be their genuine selves. Trans students can struggle with housing programs that may not be accommodating or understanding of their needs. With all the social and emotional pressure on students as they begin a higher education program, financial worries can make the transition too daunting to be achievable. We want to help students over that hurdle so they can focus on their dreams.
Proud Scholars was born from one person’s similar experience. Graduating from high school without a vision for his own future, our founder, Noah Kling, delayed entering college for several years. His journey to find himself and create a plan for his career gave him the desire to help other LGBT students avoid some of the struggles he encountered.
Our goal is to establish a one million dollar trust fund that will be self-sustaining and provide multiple scholarships per year for a variety of educational pursuits for students ages 17-24. In addition, we plan to develop support programs to provide mentoring, internships, community leadership opportunities, and networking that can help students shape their goals and find secure employment after graduation.
We’re grateful for the gifts received from our friends and community members, from your financial contributions to your donations of time and support. Thank you for sharing the vision of Proud Scholars!
For more information, please visit our website, www.proudscholars.org, and follow our Facebook page for the latest news and events, www.facebook.com/ProudScholars.
