What do Flexsteel, Ethan Allen, HSM Solutions, Vanguard Furniture, Craftmaster Furniture, Hickory White, United Furniture Industries, Franklin Corp., Norwalk Furniture and England Inc., have in common? These 10 AHFA member companies all had an employee with a son or daughter who was AHFA Solution Partners scholarship winner in 2019.
This year, your company could be on that list, but only if you informed your employees about the scholarship program and encouraged them to have their college-age children apply. January 31 is the deadline for scholarships to be awarded for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Finding and applying for financial aid is time-consuming and stressful for families. Meeting application deadlines is especially tricky for lower income households, where students are likely to be holding down part-time jobs in addition to balancing their academic and extracurricular obligations during their senior year.
The AHFA Solution Partners Scholarship application is not complicated, but it does require the student to provide details on all academic and extracurricular accomplishments, as well as a statement explaining their goals and aspirations. It also requires a letter confirming the parent’s employment at an AHFA member company. (The employee must have at least one year of continuous employment with the member company before a dependent child is eligible to apply for a scholarship.)
Eight $2,500 award-winners will be selected based on academic merit and financial need. An additional four $2,500 recipients will be selected based on academic merit alone. Recipients are notified in April. It is the only program in the home furnishings industry dedicated to helping the children of industry workers attain higher education.
Eligible students must be enrolled in or planning to enroll in a four-year college or university, a community college or a technical school. Recipients may re-apply in subsequent years for additional scholarships. Awards are made payable to the educational institution and are granted for study leading to a first undergraduate degree only. The Solution Partners Education Scholarship Program is administered without regard to race, creed, sex or national origin.