Very simply, Central Scholarship strives to make post-secondary education and training more affordable for low-income Maryland students.

We award $1 million each year in grants and interest-free loans to low-income students from throughout Maryland who are pursuing degree and non-degree post-secondary education and training. We reach them through an electronic database we created in-house, that connects us to colleges, high schools, nonprofits, and any individual or organization who has elected to receive our email blasts announcing scholarship opportunities. Students apply through an online application service. We offer College Cash®, our free financial education series, with three current offerings, “Finding Money for College", "A Parent's Guide to Finding and Funding College", and “Managing Student Loans. " All programs were developed and are delivered by our staff experts. Our Student Loan Pay-Down Program provides $30,000 in student loan relief to one lucky student recipient, pre-qualified but chosen at random, at our annual student awards ceremony. Through our Advocacy Program, we work at the state and national level to support legislation that will improve the lives of low-income students as it relates to affordability of post-secondary education and training. We are uniquely positioned for this type of work because we do not receive any government funding; our funding is completely private.

Our President and Program Director have a combined 50+ years of experience in higher education and financial aid. Our Vice President is a lifelong political activist, who drives our advocacy program as well as the College Cash® Program. Our Development Director is an expert on poverty issues and resource development. She ran a pre-school for homeless children under the age of six and a reentry program for ex-offenders. Program team members are experts in financial aid, vocational training, and data analysis. Our Marketing and Annual Fund Manager drives public relations, social networking and web development activities. Our Board of Directors is deeply committed to the mission, and provides resources and expertise that allow us to fulfill our mission year in and year out, since 1924.

We look at a variety of measures to determine if we are making the grade -- number of student applications, completion of degree or training program, amount of money raised, feedback from the community, etc. The most objective measure to gauge the success of our student program is research conducted by the Jacob France Institute at the University of Baltimore. We follow our students in the unemployment system after completion of their certificate or degree. This analysis tells us whether they are working, if they are working in the field they pursued when they received funding from us, and if there is upward movement in their earnings over time. Now that most colleges are participating in the National Student Clearinghouse, we will also follow our college students to determine if they completed their degree.

We've been very successful at building our electronic outreach program and feel reasonably comfortable about our visibility in the student world in Maryland for both degree and non-degree programs. We have been successful at raising money although we never have enough to come close to meeting the demand. Expanding the reach of College Cash® is extremely important. The only way for students and families to manage the student loan burden is to “Know Before They Go. " The most basic information, such as understanding the cost of going to an in-state college versus out-of-state college, deciphering the college student awards letter, finishing college in four years instead of six, and more, is simply not being conveyed, in fact, it isn't even a consideration for many working directly with college-bound high school students. We are working hard to educate our constituents about the forces affecting college affordability. The frenzy around college for all makes no sense, given the under-performing K-12 system and a job market that requires higher level skills and abilities. Selective colleges compete for the best students; some manipulate private scholarships to advance their own mission. This year, Maryland became the first state in the nation to introduce legislation that would restrict scholarship award displacement. This legislation was introduced at our request. While it did not pass, we will continue to work on restricting this legal, but unethical practice. Non-selective colleges, strapped for cash, often admit students who do not have the capacity to complete a college program. Students either drop out or are pushed through so that colleges can maintain the tuition income. These students are saddled with loan debt they cannot pay off, and often have credentials that do not lead to employment.