Shelby County Scholarship Applications Grow

Posted: Feb 19, 2019 4:34 PM EST

Updated: Feb 19, 2019 7:38 PM EST

By Merritt McLaughlin, Writer/Reporter

(Image of downtown Shelbyville courtesy of Mainstreet Shelbyville Inc.)

SHELBY COUNTY -

Shelby County has announced an increase in applications for its Advantage Shelby County Scholarship. Applications have grown from 244 in fall 2016 to 407 for the fall 2019 class.

The Advantage Shelby County Scholarship launched in 2016 to encourage work force readiness and college retainment. The program pays tuition and fees not covered by state, federal or institutional aid.

The scholarship can be used at any Ivy Tech campus for students enrolled, but the Shelbyville campus has the highest attendance rate. Shelby County is the first Indiana county to offer the free tuition scholarship at Ivy Tech.

“It’s going exceedingly well,” said Advantage Shelby County Scholarship Coordinator Ami Carter in a news release. “We have great students with enormous potential who might not be able to take advantage of an education, and now they can achieve the goal of a college education without the burden of student loan debt.”

To be eligible for the scholarship, students must serve 10 hours of volunteer community service per semester. Students must also have residence in Shelby County while they use the scholarship.

The scholarship is funded equally by Shelbyville and Shelby County tax dollars. Tuition and fees through the fall 2018 semester total $473,366.

Thank you to Merritt McLaughlin of Inside Indiana Business for the use of this article.