The DFUMC Educational Scholarship application is open for the 2024-2025 school year. This includes 2024 Summer Semester, 2024 Fall Semester & 2025 Spring Semester.
Endowment Funding & Approval Process:
Scholarships are funded by long-term Endowment funds gifted to the church for the purpose of supporting church members pursuing a higher education. All scholarship funds are paid directly to the school/institution. Scholarships cannot be paid directly to the students. All funds are paid in US Dollars to any international schools. Higher education is defined as the pursuit at one the following:
Undergraduate College/University
Graduate College/University
Trade School
Please note that funds are limited on an annual basis and awards are granted based on eligibility.
Scholarships Available to Students:
Scholarship awards are granted for $2,000 for those who meet eligibility criteria noted below.
Eligibility:
Priority is given to Decatur First UMC members, staff, and children of staff. Availability of funds and affiliation with the church are the major criteria considered. If the student applicant is not a church member, but the student applicant has a relative that is a church member, then this affiliation will be reviewed by the Endowment Committee on a case-by-case basis after scholarship awards have been granted to the above groups. Eligibility is also based on the limitation of $2,000 per school year and a lifetime maximum of $8,000 per student.
Deadlines & Award Grants:
February 15th: UMHEF applicants ONLY (see below for details) - $1,000 (half) of award will be sent to UMHEF by March 1st, and the remaining $1,000 will be sent to school in June.
May 15th:All other applicants - awards will be sent to schools in June to ensure that students’ school accounts for the affiliated school year have already been established.
Applications may be submitted outside of these deadlines and will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Example: students starting school in January of a school year.
United Methodist Higher Education Foundation (UMHEF):
If you are attending one of the 100+ UM-related colleges, universities, and seminaries across the country, you may be eligible for additional funds from the UMHEF. For complete details, eligibility requirements, and to apply, visit https://umhef.org. The deadline for these applications to UMHEF is March 1. Please note that the church’s different application deadline (above) related to the Dollars for Scholars program, as the church is required to submit the first $1,000 by March 1.
Undecided/High School Seniors:
If you are a high school senior and undecided about what school you will be attending, we can accept your application prior to that decision being made. In this case, just enter “TBD” into the box labeled “School/College You Will Attend” as well as into all of the boxes in the “Financial Aid Office Address” and “Student Account Number” sections. Once you make the school decision, you should provide that information to the Scholarship Coordinator.
If you have any questions about the scholarship process you can email Tracy Frost, Scholarship Coordinator for Endowment Committee, at frostgirls3@gmail.com
