Foundation Scholarships

Blugold Promise-Symons

$500 award for freshman year, renewal of $1,000 is available for sophomore year.

Available

The Joel W. Symons Blugold Promise Scholarship shall be awarded to an outstanding incoming freshman student who has graduated from high school in Wisconsin, been accepted for admission to UW-Eau Claire and demonstrates significant financial need as initially reported by the students and verified by the UW-Eau Claire Financial Aid Office. The Joel W. Symons Blugold Promise has a preference for a student who wants to be a Special Education teacher. To be considered, students must rank in the top 25% of their graduating class and have a minimum of a 25 composite on the Act (or comparable SAT), have a well-rounded high school record of academic achievement, leadership and involvement in extracurricular activities. In general a student who has a zest for life and a desire to get the most out of his/her college education will receive primary consideration. Recipients who have a successful freshman year and maintain an overall GPA of 3.0 by the end of their first year will receive a $1,000 scholarship renewal for the sophomore year.

To be considered for Incoming Freshman Student Admissions Scholarships, just submit the application for admission. There is no separate application to apply, though demonstration of financial need is required for certain merit-based scholarships. Your application for admission will be considered for all scholarships for which you are eligible. If you have questions, please contact the Admissions Office at (715)836-5415.

The Admissions Office will coordinate the selection process, which is highly competitive. The process is based off of the student’s admissions profile including: transcripts, academic history, list of involvements and essays. These are among the criteria that will be reviewed for scholarship purposes.

Screening of candidates will begin in December for some early awards and continue through the spring or until awards are accepted.

Scholarship award notices will be sent to scholarship recipients by the beginning of April of student’s senior year. If scholarships are declined, they will be re- awarded to alternates through the summer months.

Joel Symons is the beneficiary of the great work that UW- Eau Claire did in educating one of their students, Mary Jo Quinn. Mary Jo became a special education teacher in 1977 and met Joel when he was in her class in 1983. They have been friends ever since. Joel has Downs Syndrome, lives on his own in Alaska, and travels the world extensively. He has been to over 22 countries, including Egypt, Russia, Italy, Trinidad and Tobago, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and Guatemala. He visits Mary Jo in Illinois and they stay in touch through Facebook. Recipient should write a letter of thanks to Joel Symons and forward it to the UW-Eau Claire Foundation Office S-214.