Major Scholarship Programs

(Investment of $25,000+)

The H. Dale and Mrs. Lois Bright Scholarship Program
Mrs. Lois and the late H. Dale Bright grew up and lived in southern Iowa. This program encourages and helps young people from that area in their quest for a private higher education. The Bright Scholarship Program awards $2,500 scholarships each year to students from six southern Iowa counties who attend one of ICF’s 23 member colleges.

The Coca-Cola First Generation Scholarship Program
The Coca-Cola First Generation Scholarship Program was initiated in 1999 which enabled ICF to award a $5,000 scholarship for four years to a freshman student on each of the member college campuses. With that program ending, a second group of students was selected in the 2005-06 academic year for the four-year $20,000 scholarships. The scholarship continued for the student’s sophomore, junior and senior years if he/she remained in good standing at the respective institution. This special program has had a tremendous impact on those students who are the first ones in their families to attend an institution of higher education.

Hormel Foods Charitable Trust Scholarship Program
With the support of Hormel Foods, $2,000 scholarships are awarded to children of Hormel employees who plan to attend one of ICF’s member colleges. This program is a prime example of ICF working with a business that has a specific interest of helping their employees’ children attend college while assisting ICF’s member colleges and students at the same time.

Iowa Grocers Education Foundation Scholarship Fund Program
ICF administers this special program in cooperation with the Iowa Grocers Education Foundation. The scholarship program was established to recognize and aid deserving students who are related to the food industry by virtue of parental employment or their own part-time employment by member firms of the association. Nearly 90 students will receive grants in the 2009-10 academic year.

Minority Scholarship Program
Funded by a consortium of businesses and foundations, ICF has awarded scholarships to incoming minority students at its member colleges since 1994. This program has had a total impact of more than $4 million, with a high percentage of scholarship recipients either graduating or continuing their studies. Supporters of the program this year include Bankers Trust of Des Moines, Fred Maytag Family Foundation, Hy-Vee, Inc., ING, Rockwell Collins and West Bank.

Pioneer/George Washington Carver and Henry A. Wallace Scholarship Program
Because of its long commitment to private higher education in Iowa and to creating educational opportunities for minority students at ICF schools, Pioneer Hi-Bred International created this scholarship in 2003-04. Twelve recipients have been selected to receive $3,500 scholarships in the 2009-10 academic year. This scholarship fund was created in honor of the extraordinary contributions made to the state of Iowa and to Pioneer Hi-Bred International by George Washington Carver and Henry A. Wallace.

Prairie Meadows Scholarship Program
Prairie Meadows and the Iowa College Foundation have joined together to award scholarships to graduating Polk County students. Thirty-eight awards of $2,500 each have been awarded to students representative of 18 high schools in Polk County for the 2009-10 academic year. The applicant is required to submit an essay addressing the challenge of retaining Iowa’s students and young adults to make Iowa a better place to live and work.

UPS Scholarship Program
Each year ICF receives support through a special endowment funded by the UPS Foundation, and administered by the Foundation for Independent Higher Education (FIHE), of which ICF is a member. The UPS Endowment will distribute $2.2 million to the nearly 600 member colleges in 32 private college foundations like ICF. The $69,600 gift in 2008-09 was awarded as UPS Scholarships to students at ICF member institutions.

Iowa West Foundation Scholarship Program
The Iowa West Foundation awards 25 scholarships each year to students from accredited high schools in southwestern Iowa and southeastern Nebraska. These awards are renewable for the students’ sophomore, junior and senior year in college as long as certain criteria is met. The Iowa West Foundation, headquartered in Council Bluffs, Iowa, is one of the largest charitable organizations in the Midwest.