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By Greg Archer | Contributing Columnist
Inland Empire Community Foundation is offering more than 30 scholarships to Inland Empire students. The 2025 scholarship season has been streamlined, allowing students to apply directly with a common scholarship application.
Awards range from $1,000 to more than $5,000 and many scholarships are renewable. The application deadline is 5 p.m. April 15.
While scholarships are available for graduating high school seniors and current college students, undergraduate or graduate, adult reentry students and students with financial needs, including middle-income families, can apply.
Students attending community colleges or career/technical schools or four-year universities are also encouraged to apply.
A diverse range of scholarships is available.
Qualifications include: a minimum 2.0 GPA; a commitment to education; potential college success; participation in community service, extracurricular activities and/or work experience; being a current resident of Riverside County or San Bernardino County for at least one year; and demonstrating a need for assistance to pay for school.
Another significant requirement is to submit a completed FAFSA or CA Dream Act and Student Aid Report. IECF requires that information from all applicants.
Scholarship success stories abound.
In 2024, Kyra Boyle was a recipient of the Safe Schools Desert Cities Burton/May Pride Award. The award recognizes outstanding lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning or intersex youth who have helped foster a positive self-image among other LGBTQI youth. The key scholarship factors included demonstrating participation, dedication, and initiative.
“There are a lot of scholarships out there, and if a student is stressed about finances the way I was, I’d recommend reaching out to the college financial aid centers for guidance,” she said.
Boyle began college in 2020 during the pandemic. Yet one class needed to be completed for an associate degree at College of the Desert. Getting on track to graduate was key and now Boyle is headed for a degree in social work from Cal State San Bernardino Palm Desert Campus in May.
Boyle’s motto: “Happiness is wherever you go. Life is what you make it.”
Then there’s Jesse Melgar, IECF’s board chair. Determination drove Melgar’s college pursuits, but so did community support. He was able to secure $15,000 in scholarships, including one from IECF.
Thanks to the funding, he was able to attend UCLA, where he became the first in his family to graduate from college.
Flashforward several years, and Melgar went on to earn a full scholarship for his master’s degree at UC Riverside. A return to the Inland Empire followed, along with a big push to give back.
In addition to serving as IECF’s board chair, Melgar is also the founder of the CIELO Fund, which has been instrumental in uplifting Latino-led organizations and initiatives in the region.
Learn more at iegives.org or iegives.org/scholarship-season-2025.
The Inland Empire Community Foundation works to strengthen Inland Southern California through philanthropy. Visit iegives.org.
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