Kicking off its fourth year, the University of Washington Certificate Scholarship program is increasing its class of scholarship recipients due to a partnership with the Rotary Club of the University District. The club has pledged to fund scholarships for a minimum of three students in the fall of 2020.
The $10,000 will cover 80 percent of registration and course fees for Washington residents pursuing professional certificate courses from UW Professional & Continuing Education in areas such as data analytics, data science, digital marketing, project management, storytelling and content strategy. Scholarships range in value from $2,500 to $5,000, depending on the cost of the program.
“As our name is the U-District Rotary, we’re meant for each other,” said Linda Fukuda, club director.
Members of the Rotary scholarship committee met with past UW Certificate Scholarship Program scholarship recipients and were impressed by their commitment to building career skills, even in the midst of hardships.
“That has been one of our criteria: to support education and help individuals who have experienced life challenges or barriers to work opportunities,” said Linda. “We want to help those who really need it and are motivated to make their lives better.”
Linda says the local Rotary chapter is committed for the long-haul and will look for ways to extend the initial three scholarship awards to help more students. “We didn’t just want to contribute to the fund – we wanted to be part of the selection process, and the UW Continuum College team has enabled us to do that,” she said.
“Through UW Professional & Continuing Education, we are committed to opening up access to the high-quality education that working adults need to thrive professionally,” said Rovy Branon, vice provost, UW Continuum College. “We are grateful for this commitment from the U-District Rotary Club that will change the lives of three deserving adult learners in our community this year.”
Rotary scholarship applications are open March 3 through April 13.
Learn more about the difference this scholarship makes in the lives of students by hearing the stories of last year’s class.