Selby Foundation Announces Scholarship Awards

September 8, 2021 – Sarasota

The William G. and Marie Selby Foundation has awarded over $590,000 in need-based scholarships to 144 new and returning scholars from Charlotte, DeSoto, Manatee, and Sarasota county high schools. Additionally, the Foundation has made institutional awards totaling $234,000 which will benefit approximately 235 students from four counties attending State College of Florida, USF Sarasota-Manatee, Southern Scholarship Foundation, Suncoast Technical College, and Manatee Technical College. Awards are made by those institutions to students based on financial need.

The Selby Scholar program is a four-year, renewable, need-based scholarship program, which selects 40 high school graduates from the surrounding four-county area each year, based on students’ academic preparedness, as well as their demonstration of maturity, grit, and resilience in the face of adversity.

“This year’s class and our returning scholars are no exception. They have excelled during a time of great stress and achieved academic excellence. The pandemic has presented significant obstacles for students at every level, but we are incredibly proud of these young people who have not let anything stop them from pursuing their
academic and career dreams, all while demonstrating leadership and service to their community,” states the Foundation’s President and CEO, Carol Butera.

The 2021 Selby Scholar Cohort includes high-achieving graduates from 13 high schools in the Foundation’s four-county service area and associate-degree graduates from State College of Florida and Florida SouthWestern State College (Charlotte County). The students will be attending Florida colleges and universities as well as Boston University, Yale, Northwestern, Carnegie Mellon, Manhattan School of Music, and Stanford.

For the total class of 144 new and returning scholars:
● More than 60% of scholarships awarded are greater than $3,000 for the school
year; the highest awards were $7,000 for this group of scholars.
● Students hail from 20 high schools in all four counties served along with
associate-degree graduates from State College of Florida (Sarasota/Manatee),
Florida SouthWestern State College (Charlotte) and South Florida State College
(DeSoto).
● Majors include: Engineering, Healthcare, Education, Hospitality, the Arts,
Finance/Business, Sports Management, Physics, Criminology/Law, Marine
Science, Journalism among others
● All 144 will be attending colleges and universities in Florida, 14 states and the
District of Columbia.

The Foundation’s selection committee reviews eligible student applications submitted each spring. Semi-finalists are selected for interviews with the selection committee and finalists are selected once interviews are complete. For more information on eligibility and to apply, visit www.selbyfdn.org.