Friday night will be the annual Shawano Dollars for Scholars Gala, which will be held at The Gathering in Shawano. The Shawano Dollars for Scholars organization has raised money for 20 years from business leaders and individual donors to provide scholarships to every Shawano High School senior who applies and will be continuing their education.
Board member, Dawn Knope, says they hold the gala as a fundraiser and a way to keep the public aware of what they do.
“The purpose of the event, or Dollars for Scholars, is to raise money to give out scholarships to graduating seniors and students that are continuing college, said Knope. “Anyone who is in college, or going to school, they can fill out a continuing education scholarship.”
Other eligible qualifiers for the scholarships include returning to school adults, and adults demonstrating significant hardships wishing to obtain an education.
Students were awarded their scholarships on Monday night, where a total of 106 scholarships were presented, totaling around $203,000. Although every student who applies is awarded the financial support, there many factors that are taken into account.
“They get graded on their GPA, their ACT score, their community involvement and volunteering experience, and then if they’re in sports or outside activities, and jobs,” Knope said of the application process.
At the gala Friday night, there will be a social hour, along with dinner at 7 p.m. with an art display, entertainment, and big prize raffles.
“We have a 65-inch LCD, smart TV with a Polk soundbar. We have a Mathews V2 compound bow and some targets and some gift certificates. One of the packages is a kayak and another package is two tickets to the Billy Joel concert with a gift certificate for dinner.”
The evening’s events begin at 6:15 p.m. at The Gathering in Shawano. Since its inception, Shawano Dollars for Scholars has awarded over $1 million in scholarships, as they make it their mission to mobilize the community on behalf of postsecondary education success for students.