Annual Essay Scholarship Program

Eligibility

Annual Essay Scholarship Program, with an application deadline in March, offers 24 awards of $4000 each. Location restrictions exist.

Description

The CBAI Foundation for Community Banking provides scholarship funds for top high school seniors statewide. One semi-finalist may be chosen from each of the CBAI groups via an essay-writing contest. We have the ability to award a $1,000 scholarship to a student in 11 of CBAI's 12 groups along with $500 to a second place person in each group, which assures geographical uniformity of winners. The statewide winner will win $1,000 a year for up to four years of higher education. And, as in previous years, the high school of the overall winner will receive $500. Eligible students are Illinois high-school seniors graduating in the spring and entering an institution of higher education in the summer or fall immediately following. The immediate family members of community bankers and part-time bank employees are not eligible to enter from any CBAI member bank. (The Foundation offers separate scholarships for the children and grandchildren of community bankers associated with eligible banks.) Part-time employees of any CBAI member bank are also ineligible. Please visit the scholarship's website for more information.