by Cecilia Pham
News Reporter
University of Houston students often hear the virtues of scholarships, but they may not realize that many of the scholastic awards are donated by local businesses - and that scholarships aren't as difficult to obtain as they might think.
Lynn Cooper, scholarships chairwoman for the Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Houston, said her company has been offering scholarships to students in Harris County for the past 20 years. One of the reasons for doing that, she said, is that the society wanted to give something back to the community.
"We feel that scholarships tie us to the community," Cooper said, calling the university community the place "where the most action occurs."
Worldwide Container Services Inc. President Sam Jones said setting up two scholarships gave him a sense of accomplishment since he knew he was helping college students get their education.
"I went to the UH annual Scholarships Award Banquet, and a young girl came up to me to tell me that she was one of the students that received the scholarship I set up," Jones said.
"She said that, if it wasn't for the scholarship, she would not have been able to enroll last semester. To hear something like that makes you feel good."
But private scholarships aren't easy to get. They come with certain requirements and stipulations set by the donors, ranging from an enrollment requirement to requiring applicants to maintain a certain GPA, have teacher recommendations and conduct an interview.
Some requirements for the Gilbert & Sullivan Society scholarships deal with residency. Students who receive the scholarships must be full-time students attending a school in Harris County, or must be Harris County residents attending school elsewhere in Texas.
In addition, scholarship recipients must show a devotion to working in the fields of vocal study or stage production, Cooper said.
And students are not the only benefactors of business scholarships. Giving scholarships to students can also be a boon for the businesses that donate, often through recruitment.
For example, businesses might hire scholarship recipients as interns or offer the recipient another type of job.
John M. Howard Jr., scholarships director for the International Transportation Managers Association, said IMTA offers the awards in order to promote its field of logistics more widely and to try to get better people in the field.
Still other scholarship awards are meant to show appreciation, such as the two $1,000 award funds given to UH by Worldwide Containers to honor Bob Hall and Charlie Long, two UH Texas Information Procurement Service consultants who helped the company win its government service contracts.
"I named the two scholarships after Bob Hall and Charlie Long because I wanted the people at the university to know they have two great guys working for them," Jones said. "I didn't think a thank-you card was sufficient for what they did for my company."
Jones explained that TIPS helped Worldwide Containers obtain government contracts, which were essential in getting the company back on its feet after Continental Airlines went bankrupt.
"When you help 30 more families make the rent and buy groceries, you are doing a great thing for the community," Jones said. "I want to thank UH for helping my company turn around, but so do (those) 30 families."
UH freshman Keeya Henderson, a recipient of the Jeld Wen Foundation scholarship, said there are scholarships for every student - they just have to be found. But she added filling out filling out award applications doesn't take long and shows initiative.
"It's a chance for free money, and I might as well try," Henderson said, since the cost of college must be paid somehow.
"I definitely didn't want to pass an opportunity like that," she said.