"Your ancestors paid for each of you—whether they were from Ireland, Germany, South America, or Africa. They had no chance of knowing what your name would be. Today there are those whose names you will never know, faces you have not really looked at, personalities you have no idea of, who are dependent on you. Now, you must prepare yourself to pay for someone else’s way."

—Maya Angelou

The Student Support Services Scholarship was established to address the retention and graduation rates of low-income, first-generation Rhode Island College students and students with disabilities and is administered directly by the Office of Student Support Services. Data shows that these students are significantly more likely to leave a four-year institution of higher education without a bachelor’s degree than are students from high-income families. Student Support Services has combined grant aid received from the U.S. Department of Education with grant aid from the Pentair Foundation to fund this scholarship. Included in the scholarship is the Mentoring Program (established by the Pentair Foundation) to increase the academic achievement and graduation rates of our Rhode Island College students.

For more information about participating in this scholarship program call Student Support Services at (401) 456-8237.