The Hollister School District has plans for a new scholarship
that will help disadvantaged students participate in outside-school
activities such as sports, dance, music and art.
The Hollister School District has plans for a new scholarship that will help disadvantaged students participate in outside-school activities such as sports, dance, music and art.
Angela Hagins, the district’s liaison for the Students in Transition program, said she hopes to start accepting applications for the new Endeavor Program on March 1. If selected, the district would pay students’ tuition costs and also provide any needed equipment.
“This is a really great opportunity to shape our community,” Hagins said.
She estimated the scholarship would provide around $300 per student, although the amount would vary depending on the activity. It should be relatively easy for applicants to win their first scholarship, Hagins said, but they will need good attendance and behavior if they want continued support.
The idea, Hagins said, came from a Students in Transition study of foster and homeless children. The study made it clear that the fourth and fifth grades, in particular, are a crucial time for students.
“That’s when they start looking at gangs,” Hagins said. “This is a way to cut off the supply for gangs.”
Other studies have shown that students who participate in activities outside school tend to be healthier, better behaved and more academically successful than those who don’t, Hagins said. That’s not just because students participating in those activities tend to be wealthier, she said.
“When you’re 9 years old, your parents are working 12 hours per day and you see other kids are using $300 bats, it’s hard not to be angry,” Hagins said.
The Endeavor Program won’t provide fancy, expensive equipment, she said, but it will allow students to “show they can be quality individuals.”
The Endeavor Program is the first scholarship of its kind of which Hagins has heard. She said administrators in other districts have told her, “Yeah, that would work – that makes sense.”
There are obstacles, Hagins acknowledged. For one thing, the school district cannot spend any government money on the scholarship, so all of the $10,000 goal must come from local donations – and that’s for the first round of funding only.
“We absolutely have to continue fundraising,” Hagins said.
How to Help:
The Endeavor Program will be holding a benefit dinner at the Cedar House on Jan. 29. For more information, call Angela Hagins at 831-630-6368.
