The Pioneer Ambassadors will be selecting one student for a $300 book scholarship as part of their first annual book scholarship. Applicants must submit a 1,300-1,500 word essay about an exceptional experience they’ve had at DU inside or outside of the classroom.
“It’s a struggle being a college student,” said Michael Jennings, student alumni director. “So we give students a quarter where they don’t have to worry about books or a percentage of the cost of books.”
All students must do to earn this money is write an essay explaining their experiences.
“We all go through things in our lives and the power to articlute is one of the best things we have,” said Jennings. “I can’t see any other way than for someone to write an essay explaining their experiences.” He added, “We want to encourage people to take the opportunity to write an essay expressing how they feel. It is a great way to express feelings and thoughts.”
Jennings, who describes himself as very involved in the project but not the brains behind the idea, said the group got the idea from another organization that operates at the University of Wisconsin. All the money for the scholarship is not just coming out of the department, though. About 50-60 percent of the money has been raised by the Pioneer Ambassadors themselves. They will continue to raise money by soliciting parents and the Alumni Association to donate money. University Advancement will match the amount. The Pioneer Ambassadors are “exceptional students with spirit for the school,” said Jennings.
Each member is selected based on academics and school spirit and each member is required to do community service. Past events have included canned food drives, working with Habitat for Humanity and helping the AUSA Senate with pregame parties.
“We have some really great new members,” said Jennings. “I think the program is going to be positive not only for our group, but for the university.”
This time the Pioneer Ambassadors want to make a positive contribution in the lives of their fellow classmates. Presently, only one $300 book scholarship is available, but the Pioneer Ambassadors are working to raise more money for a second scholarship. Once entries have been turned in, a panel of judges will select the winner. The essays will be read anonymously.
“Sometimes people are shy to share their experiences,” said Jennings. “But a diverse group of people will read.”
The money must be spent on books at the DU Bookstore, but if a particular student is finished with classes, the student doesn’t have to spend money on books, Jennings said.
“I’m open as long as it goes to something academic. We really want to promote academics and academic interests.”
The competition is open to all fulltime students who have taken at least 12 quarter hours of courses and have above a 3.0 GPA. Applications can be picked up at the Alumni House or from a Pioneer Ambassador. The deadline is Feb. 28.
