Free money: Reevaluating, reassessing, and removing barriers to chapter scholarships

Background: PNC/MLA Scholarship Committee has examined, expanded and updated our student scholarship application and distribution process. Our committee goals were to remove barriers to receiving the scholarship and that the money given was unrestricted. To achieve this goal we reviewed and simplified the application process and increased the number of scholarships and the amount of funds disbursed.

Description:
The PNC/MLA Scholarship Committee started the review of our student scholarship application process in 2021. Our priorities were to simplify the process and make it more equitable. To achieve that goal, we increased the number of scholarships granted, added a category for underrepresented groups, and increased the scholarship minimum. We developed a rubric that would make the process more consistent and transparent. We eliminated routine requirements that we identified as discriminatory such as requiring chapter membership and letters of reference. We expanded this opportunity to include newly enrolled students by accepting a wider array of documentation such as acceptance letters instead of just transcripts. We extended our deadline to be more in line with the school year.
The new rubric facilitated a quick turnaround time for application review and notification to recipients. We gave recipients a choice between being mailed a paper check or fund transfer depending on their needs. Expanded choices allowed for quicker funds disbursement.
In view of the process improvement success, in the fall of 2021 the PNC/MLA Scholarship Committee recommended removing the letters of reference requirement from the MLA scholarship process to the MLA Grants & Scholarship Committee.

Conclusion: After putting our scholarship application through a thoughtful and rigorous examination we were able to create an application process that is simplified, succinct, and equitable. All of these changes culminated in awarding funds to excellent candidates who expressed how much they helped ease their student experience. In August 2022 we were informed by the MLA Grants & Scholarship Committee that our recommendations have been accepted and implemented for the 2022-2023 scholarship year.