The first months of 2025 have been an especially busy time at the Scholarship Foundation. I thought I would take a moment and briefly highlight some of our recent successes. I am pleased to report that our Art Scholarship program remains very popular with both students and the wider public. In fact, we successfully expanded… Read more »
The Scholarship Foundation has received 3,299 applications for financial assistance during the 2025-26 academic year. The applications are currently under review, and awardees will be announced in April and May. Last year the Scholarship Foundation awarded more than $7.1 million to 1,787 students throughout Santa Barbara County. “The high number of applications received this year… Read more »
As part of an effort to expand its longstanding art scholarship program, the Scholarship Foundation honored a dozen student artists during a reception at the California Nature Art Museum in Solvang on February 13. The 12 seniors at Santa Ynez Valley Union High School had taken part in the Foundation’s inaugural Santa Ynez Valley Art… Read more »
The Scholarship Foundation honored 20 student artists during a presentation and reception at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art on February 6. Selected as winners of the Foundation’s 2025 Art Scholarship Competition, the students addressed family members and supporters in the museum’s Mary Craig Auditorium. Each will receive a scholarship, and their selected art submissions… Read more »
The Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara has forged an enduring collaboration with Partners in Education. The two organizations regularly co-host workshops for area students and are now exploring new joint programming opportunities. Santa Barbara-based Partners in Education is dedicated to preparing youth for college, career, or simply the next grade by creating skill-building opportunities for… Read more »
More than 300 people turned out for the Scholarship Foundation’s 2024 Community Leaders Luncheon at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort on December 6. The annual event recognizes Scholarship Foundation supporters, volunteers, and community partners. Featured speakers this year included Dr. Peter Rupert, executive director of the UCSB Economic Forecast Project, and Billie Maunz, former… Read more »
For as long as he can remember, Edgar Olozagaste has had a keen interest in computers. It would take a family crisis, however, for him to realize that they could be the key to his future. The decisive catalyst was a series of heart-to-heart talks with his mother after Edgar and his siblings had been… Read more »
As part of an exclusive U.S. Department of Education initiative, the Scholarship Foundation has conducted initial testing of the latest Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) with the help of community members and education advocates in Santa Maria. More than 100 seniors from Santa Maria, Pioneer Valley, and Ernest Righetti high schools completed the… Read more »
The Scholarship Foundation is one of only six organizations nationwide selected by the U.S. Department of Education to conduct initial testing of the latest Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The Scholarship Foundation’s testing efforts will involve students from three Santa Maria high schools as well as financial aid specialists at Westmont College in… Read more »
Despite the efforts of lawmakers to legislate a course correction, the U.S. Department of Education continues to struggle with a key financial aid form. In July, bills were introduced in both the House and Senate that would require this year’s Free Application for Federal Student Aid or FAFSA to be released in October. The Department… Read more »
