The Baylor Line Foundation (BLF) has selected 82 incoming freshmen and undergraduates to receive $1,000 Legacy Scholarships for the 2016-17 school year, a 50% increase over last year.
The BLF received more than 200 applications from the children and grandchildren of Baylor alumni, and a panel of reviewers based their decisions on a combination of Strength of Legacy, Academics, Extracurriculars, and Need/Impact.
“There were so many outstanding applications from terrific students who have grown up surrounded by members of the Baylor family that it was heartbreaking to have to say no to many of them,” said BLF President Fred Norton Jr., ’80, JD ‘83. “We could tell how much time they spent on their applications, how hard they’re working in the classroom, and what they’re contributing in their communities and on campus. We could see how hard they – and their parents – were working to make a Baylor education affordable in the midst of continued increases in tuition. But the bar was raised this year due to the number of applications we received, and many of the students who we had to turn down this year would have received awards in past years.”
Fundraising for the scholarship program far surpassed the results of previous years, fueled in large part by the very successful Onward! event in early June and by contributions during both a 2015 year-end campaign and from alumni excited that the university settled its litigation against the Baylor Alumni. None of the scholarship money for the 2016-17 school year is coming from the $2 million settlement payment from the university, and the board decided to reserve a portion of the funds raised during the 2015-16 fiscal year to increase the Legacy Scholarship Fund’s endowment to fuel future awards.
The BLF is committed to working toward awarding more scholarships for higher amounts in future years. If you are interested in supporting this program, you can learn more here (link) and donate with a secure credit-card payment or by check.
