Temple to offer full-paid scholarships to school-district students

Four very smart, very fortunate School District of Philadelphia seniors will be attending Temple University on full scholarships in the fall of 2009, Temple president Ann Weaver Hart is scheduled to announce at today's School Reform Commission meeting.

Hart, who is to be joined by Mayor Nutter, will be unveiling the Temple University Philadelphia Scholars program during the commission's 1 p.m. meeting at the school district's 440 N. Broad St. administration building.

The new program will offer fully paid scholarships to four school-district graduates each year for the next 10 years, starting next year. The program dovetails with Nutter's goal of boosting the number of Philadelphians who have college degrees.

"This program is a natural for Temple," Hart said in a statement. "We share Mayor Nutter's vision for increasing the number of Philadelphians with college degrees."

"I applaud Temple's commitment to providing deserving young Philadelphians with access to a world-class higher education," Nutter said in a statement. "When it comes to educating our children and building a skilled, educated workforce, Temple is one of the region's powerful engines for positive change."

To be eligible for the scholarship program, students must be Philadelphia residents who attend one of the school district's 66 high schools. They must be nominated by their high school or by one of the district's community- or faith-based partners, and must complete required application forms.

Recipients will be chosen by a Temple committee based on high-school academic performance, standardized test scores, community service and financial need.

Special consideration will be given to those who live and attend schools adjacent to Temple's North Philadelphia campus.

The scholarships will be renewable for a total of four years, contingent upon recipients' academic progress in full-time study.

The program was created in partnership with the 167,000-student school district, Hart said.

"We know that students are motivated to attend school and to work hard when they see a direct pathway from school to college and then on to viable careers," reform commission chairwoman Sandra Dungee Glenn said in a statement.

"An exciting college experience at Temple awaits the young women and men who are chosen as scholarship recipients."

For more information, contact the Temple provost's office at 215-204-4775, or visit: www.temple.edu/provost.