On Tuesday, September 26th, 2023, Urban League of Northwest Indiana will host its 21st Annual College Scholarship Fair at Indiana University (IU) Northwest from 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
"The scholarship fair at IU Northwest will include about 60 colleges and universities from all over the United States," Dr. Vanessa Allen-McCloud, President & CEO of Urban League of Northwest Indiana, said. "Several in attendance will be historically black universities & colleges, and some will be offering full or partial scholarships on the spot."
The goal of the scholarship fair is to provide students of all demographics in the area access to both information and potential resources to further their education.
"Students have walked away from the scholarship fair with full-ride scholarships so they can attend college without having to pay," Allen-McCloud said.
Although the scholarship fair is occurring on a Tuesday, this event remains to be significant and widely attended by Lake, Porter, and LaPorte schools. Last year, approximately 900 - 1000 students attended. Urban League encourages schools around the area to inform their students of this great opportunity. Parents are able to personally bring their child and request an excused absence for attending the fair since it is considered an educational field trip.
Prior to attending, it is important that potential students prepare themselves and bring the correct materials.
"Students should have at least a 2.5 GPA, bring their transcript, and come prepared with their elevator speech," Allen-McCloud said.
Although an elevator speech may be unknown to many, Allen-McCloud notes that attending students will simply need to discuss in one or two minutes what they hope to get out of college, and why they would become an asset to the institutions learning environment. Additionally, they should indicate their need for a scholarship!
Urban League hopes that the scholarship fair saves more than just college tuition for families.
"Imagine the travel costs for families to see so many colleges," Allen-McCloud said. "On September 26th, we bring all of that to them."
It's more than just scholarships, Urban League is happy to bring these and other student and family oriented resources to the students and families of the Region.
"The scholarship fair is for students that are high school graduating seniors, current college students, or returning students," said Allen-McCloud. Of course, it would be beneficial if 11th graders could attend and obtain the experience on what to expect next year.
As part of upholding its mission, Urban League works to improve the social, educational, and economic conditions of the residents of Lake, Porter, and La Porte counties.
"We work to make sure there is more access to resources and to make sure everyone is more aware of all of the opportunities out there," said Allen-McCloud. "Along with university representatives, there will be vendors that are focused on family and student initiatives."
These vendors range from help with writing college application essays to local banks who some also offer scholarships, such as Horizon Bank and Old National Bank.
"We include career-focused vendors as well," Allen-McCloud said. "The military and police representatives will be there. We will also have Indiana Plan which is a pre-apprenticeship program, in addition to the colleges and universities in attendance."
As well as meeting and greeting representatives from colleges and universities, many of the post-secondary schools will waive admission fees.
Attendees can register for the fair by calling (219) 887-9621 or by visiting urbanleagueofnwi.org.
