Oak Park and River Forest High School Scholarship Foundation

01/24/2023

Since 2023, OPALGA+ has awarded $138,000 in scholarships to graduating seniors.

The deadline is Feb 28

The scholarship info is at

What is the OPALGA+Student Scholarship Fund? The OPALGA+ Student Scholarship Fund provides financial support for continuing education of local LGBTQ+ students and allies who have demonstrated service and advocacy to the LGBTQ+ community and/or the larger community. Scholarships vary in amount up to....

12/15/2022

ATTENTION OPRFHS SENIORS AND FAMILIES: This is an amazing opportunity so please do click on the link to learn more.

The Oak Park and River Forest High School Scholarship Foundation will be offering more than 80 scholarships for graduating seniors, including Career Pathways Scholarships for students not planning to attend a 4 year college. More than $175,000 will be distributed. Many scholarships are not financial need but merit based. A number do include essays so it is advised to have seniors start focusing now on the scholarships of interest and the criteria to apply. The scholarship common application will open Friday Jan 6 at 9 am and close Friday Jan 27 at 3:30 pm. Click on the "library" link for easy access to the scholarship descriptions. Reach out with any questions to [email protected]

Anyone can browse our library of available scholarships. Current Seniors can log in to apply. Our scholarships are generally based on wide-ranging criteria including, but not limited to economic need, academic merit, volunteerism, talent and public service.

11/28/2022

https://scholarships4oprfhs.org/scholarships

Rebuilding Together to help our seniors realize their dreams. We rely on you to help us meet the growing financial needs of students to cover the rising costs of college. We are dedicated to working with our community of supporters to support our seniors aspirations for college attendance and career readiness.

07/27/2022

https://www.forestinsured.com/referral-program/

Thanks to Forest Insurance for choosing the OPRFHS Scholarship Foundation as their Charity of the Quarter. Every referral that is made means a donation to our foundation that supports scholarships for graduating seniors.

Forest Insurance provides Referral Program for Forest Park and all of Illinois.

06/11/2022

Only 2 percent of those eligible for this program have gotten their loans forgiven. That means there’s 98 percent who may miss out.

05/16/2022

Sunday May 15 Chicago Tribune SUCCESS page had two helpful articles. One by Terry Savage "How Will You Pay for College?" and Steve Rosen Kids and Money "How to Appeal for more college financial aid"
https://tribunecontentagency.com/article/kids-and-money-how-to-appeal-for-more-financial-aid/

03/24/2022

The John C. Swanson Scholar Grant Application is now open. The purpose of the fund is to support academic or social-emotional experiences for teachers and/or students. Students who apply must work in collaboration with a teacher(s) who is the primary applicant. In the application, there is a link to the Swanson Scholar Fund Guidelines, to further explain the grant. Grants are given in amounts up to $5,000, with $20,000 available in total funding for its inaugural 2022 year. The application deadline is Friday, April 8. Completed applications will be reviewed by the Swanson Committee and awardees notified by the end of the school year. In the application, you will be asked to provide a detailed budget listing all costs and supplies. For the link or questions Contact Scholarship Foundation Manager Melanie Weiss at [email protected]

03/15/2022

The following essay scholarship contests close at 11:59 pm today... Tuesday, March 15th. Both scholarship contests are being managed thru the Submittable App. Students will need to create an account in Submittable to view contest rules, essay prompt and submit their work. There is no cost for an account or to submit an essay.
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Hemingway Foundation Student Scholarship (Juniors Only)
Ernest Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park (EHFOP) sponsors an annual Hemingway Foundation Student Scholarship Essay Contest. This competition, which is based on a 300-600 word essay on a given topic, is open to all Oak Park River Forest High School (OPRFHS) juniors in conjunction with the English Division at the High School. The top three finalists chosen are included in our annual Hemingway Shorts literary journal. The first place winner receives a $1,000 college scholarship, administrated through the Oak Park and River Forest High School Scholarship Foundation, and a writing mentorship with the Foundation's Writer-in-Residence during their senior year at OPRFHS. The award is presented during the Foundation's Annual Benefit.
Only OPRF Juniors are eligible. You must have a minimum unweighted GPA of 2.5 to apply.
Allan O. Baldwin Memorial Student Scholarship (Seniors Only)
In 2020, a new memorial scholarship has been established in memory of former Hemingway Foundation Chairman and past Treasurer, Allan O. Baldwin. This scholarship is awarded through an essay competition, which is based on a 300-600 words on a given topic, is open to all Oak Park River Forest High School (OPRFHS) seniors in conjunction with the English Division at the High School. The top finalist chosen will be included in our annual Hemingway Shorts literary journal and receives a $1,000 college scholarship, administrated through the Hemingway Foundation. The award is presented during the Foundation's Annual Benefit.
Only OPRF Seniors are eligible. The previous year’s Hemingway Scholarship overall winner is not eligible for this scholarship. You must have a minimum unweighted GPA of 2.5 to apply.
More information on the contest rules and submissions can be found https://www.hemingwaybirthplace.com/student-scholarship-fund (as of February 15th)
2022 OPRF Scholarship Contests.pdf

Only OPRF Seniors are eligible. The previous year’s Hemingway Scholarship overall winner is not eligible for this scholarship. You must have a minimum unweighted GPA of 2.5 to apply. 

02/21/2022

https://tribunecontentagency.com/article/kids-and-money-state-financial-aid-for-college-often-overlooked/ This article has some good tips..including a comprehensive website to visit and details on the Ilinois Golden Apple Scholars Program.

It’s one of the most overlooked pieces of the financial aid puzzle — state-supported scholarships and loans. Every state offers at least some form of financial aid for students who are planning on attending public or private schools in their home state. Much of it is in the form of scholarships ...

02/17/2022

The following essay scholarship contests will run from Tuesday, February 15th, and will remain open until Tuesday, March 15th. Both scholarship contests are being managed thru the Submittable App. Students will need to create an account in Submittable to view contest rules, essay prompt and submit their work. There is no cost for an account or to submit an essay.

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Hemingway Foundation Student Scholarship (Juniors Only)
Ernest Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park (EHFOP) sponsors an annual Hemingway Foundation Student Scholarship Essay Contest. This competition, which is based on a 300-600 word essay on a given topic, is open to all Oak Park River Forest High School (OPRFHS) juniors in conjunction with the English Division at the High School. The top three finalists chosen are included in our annual Hemingway Shorts literary journal. The first place winner receives a $1,000 college scholarship, administrated through the Oak Park and River Forest High School Scholarship Foundation, and a writing mentorship with the Foundation's Writer-in-Residence during their senior year at OPRFHS. The award is presented during the Foundation's Annual Benefit.
Only OPRF Juniors are eligible. You must have a minimum unweighted GPA of 2.5 to apply.
Allan O. Baldwin Memorial Student Scholarship (Seniors Only)
In 2020, a new memorial scholarship has been established in memory of former Hemingway Foundation Chairman and past Treasurer, Allan O. Baldwin. This scholarship is awarded through an essay competition, which is based on a 300-600 words on a given topic, is open to all Oak Park River Forest High School (OPRFHS) seniors in conjunction with the English Division at the High School. The top finalist chosen will be included in our annual Hemingway Shorts literary journal and receives a $1,000 college scholarship, administrated through the Hemingway Foundation. The award is presented during the Foundation's Annual Benefit.
Only OPRF Seniors are eligible. The previous year’s Hemingway Scholarship overall winner is not eligible for this scholarship. You must have a minimum unweighted GPA of 2.5 to apply.
More information on the contest rules and submissions can be found https://www.hemingwaybirthplace.com/student-scholarship-fund (as of February 15th)
2022 OPRF Scholarship Contests.pdf

01/27/2022

https://oakparkareaartscouncil.org/scholarships/
The Oak Park Area Arts Council Scholarships are now available for HS Seniors to apply. The scholarships help defray college tuition costs. Visit the OPAAC website for more details and to apply. Deadline is February 14, 2022.

The Oak Park Area Arts Council is offering the following 4 scholarship opportunities to arts involved graduating seniors who will pursue an arts major in college.