CHS Scholarship Fund Provides Some Much Needed Help

The Columbia High School Scholarship Fund has awarded more than $90,000 -- a record amount -- to nearly 90 students to help continue their educations in college and professional schools.

As the continues to soar, the help is needed more than ever before, the recipients said.

Shirley Dessein, a CHS graduate studying at Lincoln University, is among the students grateful for the assistance. She reached a point wondering how she was going to pay her bills before the CHS Scholarship Fund (CHSSF) stepped in to help her cover her costs.  “I was overwhelmed to see the zeros,” she said.

At a ceremony last week at the CHS Library, Dessein joined the recipients honored by members of the scholarship fund and donors, their families and mentors.

CHSSF has been in existence for nearly 90 years, said Joan Lee, a member of the fund. “Our scholarships are need-based with an expectation that the student will succeed in school, and that they or their family will contribute to the cost of their education.”

This year, $92,500 was awarded for a total of 87 scholarships, Lee said. The money comes from a variety of sources. CHSSF raises funds throughout the year and earns interest on its endowed funds. It also receives donations from CHS alum and the community.

“Our awards may be used for traditional two and four year colleges, business, beauty, or technical school, and a variety of post high school programs,” Lee said. (Learn more on the CHSSF website @ www.chssf.org)

The financial help Carl Adrien received from the scholarship fund paid dividends for the Class of 2002 alum. Now an investment banker with an MBA, he returned to CHS as a guest speaker at the awards ceremony.

“Ten years ago Columbia invested in me because they believed in me,” Adrien said, before encouraging this year’s recipients to believe in themselves, to go on to college and be a success -- “and prove to the members of scholarship fund they were right to give you this money.”