As the cost of a college education continues to rise each year, offering scholarship support has become one of the main ways to attract and retain the best and brightest students to the University of Houston, the College of Technology and its programs. During the Technology Philanthropy Awards on April 9, the generosity of donors who understand the priority of scholarship support was recognized, and scholarship recipients for the year were introduced.
"Sometimes, the scholarship award is what allows the student to continue his or her coursework without interruption or distraction. Many times, the opportunity to receive a scholarship is the deciding factor for an incoming or transfer student in selecting UH over another institution," said Dean William E. Fitzgibbon. "The Technology Philanthropy Awards are where scholarship funds touch and transform our students’ lives by providing hope and inspiration," he said.
Attendees heard from scholarship recipient Sandra Juarez, a senior mechanical engineering technology major, on how receiving funding has influenced her experience at UH.
"Receiving this scholarship has made me believe in myself and has driven me to continue to pursue my dreams," said Juarez, a recipient of the Halliburton Petroleum Technology Scholarship. "In our college, we are fortunate to have donors at all levels who recognize the role student scholarships play in educating our future workforce and have chosen this as the direction for their philanthropic gifts, said Vernon King, director of development. "Whether you are a donor to our general scholarship fund, or have established an operational or endowed scholarship fund, we are grateful for the support," he said.
The College of Technology was able to award $83,000 in scholarships to students. Awards range from $250 to $5,000 to students in majors across the four departments: Construction, Engineering Technology, Human Development and Consumer Sciences, and Information and Logistics Technology.
While the College of Technology scholarship program continues to grow, there is still a tremendous need for additional funding. Currently, only about two percent of the college’s 4,000 students receive scholarship funding. If you would like additional information on the college’s scholarship program, please contact Vernon King at veking [at] Central.UH.EDU (veking[at]Central[dot]UH[dot]EDU).