THE DEADLINE FOR SPRING 2012 SCHOLARSHIPS IS FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2011. You may download the current application at:

SREFApplication_1011

We have also created a sample application to better illustrate what we consider a complete application at:

SREF App – 2011 Sample

1. All materials, including transcripts and financial data, must be received by the scholarship coordinator on or before the deadline.
2. We welcome applications from all Sudanese refugees with ties to the Louisville community regardless of church affiliation.
3. Completed applications should be mailed to Sandy Milner, 203 Hidden Oak Place, Louisville, KY 40222. If you have questions, you may contact Sandy by email at 2milners@gmail.com or by phone at 502-426-6774.
4. All scholarship checks will be made out to the college and placed in the student’s account to pay for tuition, books, and fees.
5. Applicants must reside in, or have resided in, the Louisville, Kentucky region.
6. Students are eligible if they attend a regionally accredited school, and the board will give preference to students attending not-for-profit schools. Examples of eligible schools include all public universities, including the University of Kentucky, University of Louisville, Jefferson Community and Technical College, etc. and not-for-profit private schools including Bellarmine University, Transylvania University, and Spaulding University. Examples of ineligible, for-profit schools include the University of Phoenix, National College, Daymar College, and Spencerian College.
7. Applicants are judged according to five criteria: (1) evidence of scholarship and strength of the academic program, (2) quality of answers on the application, (3) persistence in continuing their education, (4) financial need, and (5) record of service. The amount of individual scholarships and the total number of scholarships awarded each grant cycle depends on the availability of funds. Not all applicants will receive awards.

Our series debuts Saturday, August 20, at 4:00 p.m. with a workshop on Basic Financial Education to be held at Resurrection Community Center, 4100 Southern Parkway, Louisville Kentucky. This seminar is designed to help everyone in the community—working students, stay-at-home moms, working mothers, graduates just entering the work force, etc.—manage their household finances and make sound budgetary decisions. Topics to be covered include:

• Basic Household Financial Budgeting
• Consumer Credit Basics: Credit cards, student loans, and more.
• Fringe Financial Services & Products: Pay-day loans and other high-interest, high-cost financial services.

This workshop will be led by Vickie Johnson, SREF board member and Economic Justice Coordinator at Kentucky Domestic Violence Association.

Reservations may be made by calling Vickie at 720-298-4320 or emailing vickieann1@gmail.com

Drop-ins are welcome.

The ceremony will include tributes to our recent graduates, an address by University of Louisville graduate and past scholarship recipient Ngor Biar Deng, and will be followed by a reception. All members of the Sudanese Community in Louisville and their friends and supporters are welcome.

We look forward to seeing you on the 13th!

Yol Aciek, University of Louisville

Christine Nakwa, University of Colorado

Solomon John, Jefferson Community and Technical College

Abraham D. Magot, Jefferson Community and Technical College

Mawut Mach, University of Louisville

Luol A. Deng, Western Kentucky University

Buol Akol, Jefferson Community and Technical College

James Atem, Jefferson Community and Technical College

Mabior Mabior, University of Louisville

2011 SREF Scholarship Application

Please note the following important reminders:

1. All materials, including transcripts and financial data, must be received by the scholarship coordinator on or before the deadline.
2. Completed applications should be mailed to Sandy Milner, 203 Hidden Oak Place, Louisville, KY 40222. If you have questions, you may contact Sandy by email at 2milners@gmail.com or by phone at 502-426-6774.
3. All scholarship checks will be made out to the college and placed in the student’s account to pay for tuition, books, and fees.
4. Applicants must reside in, or have resided in, the Louisville, Kentucky region.
5. Students are eligible if they attend a regionally accredited school, and the board will give preference to students attending not-for-profit schools. Examples of eligible schools include all public universities, including the University of Kentucky, University of Louisville, Jefferson Community and Technical College, etc. and not-for-profit private schools including Bellarmine University, Transylvania University, and Spaulding University. Examples of ineligible, for-profit schools include the University of Phoenix, National College, Daymar College, and Spencerian College. We have instituted this new eligibility requirement as the result of media and legislative investigations into the for-profit school industry. Research shows that the vast majority of private, for profit schools leave students with a burdensome debt-load and record unsatisfactory graduation rates compared to not-for-profit institutions. For more information or clarification about this decision, please contact the board. More information will be available on the SREF website soon.
6. Applicants are judged according to five criteria: (1) evidence of scholarship and strength of the academic program, (2) quality of answers on the application, (3) persistence in continuing their education, (4) financial need, and (5) record of service. The amount of individual scholarships and the total number of scholarships awarded each grant cycle depends on the availability of funds. Not all applicants will receive awards.

“May God shower you all with his benedictions for your services and love for others,” Kennedy Nakwa, a student at Xavier University in Cincinnati, wrote in a letter of thanks to the Malden Catholic community.

Malden Catholic is run by the Xaverian Brothers, a Catholic order started 170 years ago for the primary purpose of educating youth.

Some rights reserved by Barry Yanowitz; Licensed under Creative Commons

Louisville-based musician Will Oldham (aka Bonnie “Prince” Billy) and the band Yo La Tengo (Ira Kaplan, Georgia Hubley, and James McNew) donated part of the proceeds from a benefit concert at Maxwell’s in Hoboken, New Jersey, to the Sudanese Refugee Education Fund. The $2,554 gift resulted from a charitable concert held on each of the eight nights of Hanukkah. Other groups and comedians performing included the Cairo Gang, Kristen Schaal and Kurt Braunohler, and Nels Cline. They all worked for free to raise money for designated charities. The board members of the Sudanese Refugee Education Fund are honored to have made their list.