DENVER, CO – April 12, 2023: The Colorado Opportunity Scholarship Initiative (COSI) board awarded 78 proposals for the 2022-2023 Matching Student Scholarship application period that will provide nearly $15 million in scholarships for Colorado students.
COSI’s $7.5 million investment is part of its Matching Student Scholarship program which aims to help under-resourced students by matching community scholarship dollars one-to-one.
“The funds will serve more than 5,800 students,” said Cynthia Armendariz, COSI managing director. “Since the launch of this program in 2014, students that receive these funds are more likely to persist and graduate with less debt than their peers.”
The scholarships are multi-year awards ranging from $1,250 to $6,500 per year, depending on the program and the student’s financial need, and most students receive the scholarship within the next two years.
There are three types of matching student scholarship grants including awards allocated to counties, awards allocated to institutions of higher education, and awards for programs that focus on Colorado’s top workforce needs.
The breakdown of awards distributed in each grant type is as follows:
- 48 counties ($4,985,606)
- 28 institutions of higher education ($1,468,702)
- 13 workforce ($1,020,500)
County Awards:
- Adams County Education Consortium on behalf of Adams County: $556,555
- Adams State University Foundation on behalf of Alamosa, Conejos, Costilla, Huerfano, Las Animas, Mineral, Rio Grande, and Saguache counties: $102,720
- Arapahoe Community College Foundation on behalf of Arapahoe County: $787,816
- Arapahoe Community College Foundation on behalf of Douglas County: $128,017
- Boys and Girls Club of Fremont County on behalf of Fremont County: $41,273
- Clear Creek Schools Foundation on behalf of Clear Creek County: $2,365
- Colorado Mesa University Foundation on behalf of Delta County: $43,075
- Colorado Mesa University Foundation on behalf of Mesa County: $145,534
- Colorado Mesa University Foundation on behalf of Montrose County: $44,502
- Colorado Mountain College Foundation on behalf of County- Chaffee, Garfield, Jackson, Lake, Pitkin, Routt, and Summit Counties: $133,381
- Colorado Nonprofit Development Center on behalf of Dolores County: $2,206
- Custer County School District on behalf of Custer County: $2,933
- Denver Scholarship Foundation on behalf of Denver County: $723,736
- Front Range Community College Foundation on behalf of Larimer County: $219,573
- Grand Foundation on behalf of Grand County: $8,697
- “I Have a Dream” Foundation of Boulder County on behalf of Boulder County: $267,393
- Morgan Community College on behalf of Elbert, Kit Carson, Lincoln, Morgan, Washington, and Yuma Counties: $10,6513
- North Colorado Medical Center Foundation on behalf of Weld County: $276,583
- Northeastern Junior College on behalf of Logan, Phillips, and Sedgwick Counties: $38,464
- Otero Junior College on behalf of Crowley and Otero Counties: $42,392
- Pueblo Hispanic Education Foundation on behalf of Pueblo County: $225,158
- Red Rocks Community College on behalf of Jefferson County: $399,682
- True North Youth Program on behalf of San Miguel County: $4,628
- University of Colorado Foundation – UCCS on behalf of El Paso County: $640,646
- Western Colorado University Foundation on behalf of Gunnison and Hinsdale Counties: $9,307
- YouthPower 365 on behalf of Eagle County: $32,457
Institutions of Higher Education Awards:
- Adams State University Foundation: $13,394
- Aims Community College Foundation: $41,562
- Colorado Mesa University Foundation: $71,449
- Colorado Mountain College Foundation: $25,016
- Colorado School of Mines Foundation: $17,290
- Colorado State University Foundation (Fort Collins): $104,000
- Colorado State University-Pueblo Foundation: $33,647
- Emily Griffith Foundation: $7,969
- Foundation for Colorado Community Colleges on behalf of the Colorado Community College System: $591,200
- Metropolitan State University of Denver Foundation: $199,699
- Technical College of The Rockies Foundation: $1,844
- University of Colorado Foundation - CU Boulder: $102,768
- University of Colorado Foundation – Denver: $108,302
- University of Colorado Foundation - Colorado Springs: $79,274
- University Of Northern Colorado Foundation: $60,526
- Western Colorado University Foundation: $10,762
Workforce:
- Arapahoe Community College Foundation for the Apprenticeship program: $75,000
- Colorado Mesa University Foundation for the Grand Junction Opportunity program: $83,000
- Colorado Mountain College Foundation for Human Services & Caring Professionals programs: $100,000
- Denver Scholarship Foundation for Denver Public Schools: $175,000
- Emily Griffith Foundation for students who are parents: $10,000
- Foundation for Colorado Community Colleges for endowment: $47,000
- Front Range Community College for Law Enforcement Academy: $150,000
- Foundation for Community Colleges for Career and Technical Education programs: $61,500
- Hide in Plain Sight for students experiencing homelessness: $50,000
- Project Self-Sufficiency of Loveland-Fort Collins for key industries: $75,000
- Red Rocks Community College for Early Childhood Education programs: $20,000
- University of Colorado Foundation – UCCS for Nursing programs: $75,000
- University of Colorado Foundation – UCCS for Engineering programs: $99,000
About the Colorado Opportunity Scholarship Initiative
The Colorado Opportunity Scholarship Initiative was created with the Colorado Department of Higher Education to increase the attainment of postsecondary credentials and degrees for underserved students in Colorado. The project addresses this challenge in two ways: accessibility and affordability. To increase accessibility, COSI funds programs that will help prepare students for postsecondary education, as well as support them through completion. To increase affordability, COSI provides matching funds for community scholarships.
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