The 2012-2013 ASUA senate class is now offering a new scholarship for students taking summer courses.

The Associated Students of the University of Arizona Senate Summer Scholarship will provide three students with funding to pay for three credit units, and will be applicable to both the first and second summer session, according to ASUA Sen. Vinson Liu.

The scholarship will not be applicable for the summer pre-session however, as the scholarship deadline would be too close to when class started, according to Senator-Elect Dakota Staren.

The plan for the scholarship came late in the academic year because Liu and Staren wanted to be sure there was enough money left in the ASUA budget, Staren said. Both Staren and Liu gave a presentation at the ASUA senate meeting Wednesday about the new scholarship, as well as requested funding from the senate.

“After doing a lot of research, we found that there weren’t a lot of available summer scholarships for students who needed financial aid,” Liu said during the presentation. “We felt like this was something that the senate could contribute to and help students who do need the money that take those classes.”

Though the senate agreed to fund the scholarship, it decided to take more time to determine the final details of the scholarship, such as whether it would be solely financial-need based or merit based and whether summer pre-session would be included. The senate also needed to decide which senators would be available to judge applications.

Overall, the senate was supportive of the idea.

“This is an awesome idea,” said President-Elect Morgan Abraham during the meeting. “All good thoughts and I think it’s awesome that you guys took the initiative to do something like this.”

The application will require students to give the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid permission to check their GPA and Expected Family Contribution from their FAFSA, of which they must provide, according to Liu. The senate will then work through the Office Scholarships and Financial Aid to
ensure the numbers provided are accurate.

The application will also include several essay questions, such as a personal statement and how the scholarship will enrich the applicant’s academic experience.

Applicants will be asked not to include specific honorary or Greek Life affiliations however, as to avoid bias, Staren said. Three senators will be grading each application, she added.

Additionally, the senate will be working with Scholarship Universe to add the scholarship to its listservs and get help with the marketing process, Liu said.

Scholarship Universe can match students to scholarships they’re eligible for, according to Kenneth Downs, manager for Scholarship Universe.

“The summertime is the slowest time of the year for scholarships across the nation,” Downs said, adding that he thought the ASUA Senate Summer Scholarship was great.

“Students always ask us if there is scholarships in the summer, so it’s just another opportunity for students to get some money and help pay for school,” Downs said.

According to Sen. Danielle Novelly, the decision to fund the scholarship was the last decision made by the 2012-2013 senate class.

“I’m really excited. It’s something that I think is great and it’s something that we haven’t done before,” Staren said. “I think it directly affects the student body, which is so important, and that’s why we’re here … I just hope that as many people apply as possible, and that we affect someone’s education in a positive way.”

If you apply:

Applications are due at noon May 10.
Decisions will be sent out May 13.