Chicago Blackhawk Alumni Association Scholarship

The Chicago Blackhawk Alumni Association (CBAA) distributes college scholarships annually to the most deserving Illinois high school hockey players.

Award Amount: $7,500 per year payable semi-annually in August and January, for four years ($30,000 total)

Geographic Scope: Illinois high school hockey players only

Selection Criteria:

• Academic standing (grades, class rank, standardized test scores, curriculum)
• Community and volunteer service
• Extracurricular activities
• Leadership and character
• Financial need
• Personal essay
• Coaches' recommendation letter
• Other recommendations (maximum of 2, not including coaches' letter)

Eligibility Requirements:

• Must be a member of their high school's hockey team (Varsity or Junior Varsity level)
• Applicants playing non-high school club hockey at AAA or AA level are ineligible unless the applicant's high school does not field a varsity program
• Must be applying and planning to attend college as a full-time university student in the school year following the award
• Students planning to enter college as a freshman at the beginning of the second semester or later must apply for special exemption and approval
• Must graduate from high school

Benefits to Award Winners:

• 4-year financial award of $7,500 per year
• Complimentary membership in the Blackhawk Alumni
• Participation in mentoring program with former Alumni Scholarship winners and Associate Members
• Invitation to Scholarship Awards Night at the United Center
• Invitations to: Scholarship Award Ceremony, Stan Mikita Blackhawk Alumni Golf Outing, Blackhawks Alumni Charity Games
• Access to Alumni tickets to Blackhawks games
• Access to Chicago Blackhawk Alumni meetings and events

Maintenance Requirements:

• Must maintain a 3.0 minimum GPA over any 2 consecutive quarters
• Failure to maintain GPA results in probationary status with annual renewal at discretion of Alumni Scholarship Committee
• Must submit copy of grades to Alumni Scholarship Committee at end of each semester

Application Timeline:

1. Research all information needed for application
2. Call and ask coach and both sponsors to write letters of recommendation
3. Make copy of application document and hand deliver or email to coach and both sponsors
4. Begin scholarship personal information form
5. Contact institutions for critical information (GPA, rank, SAT, ACT scores)
6. Write scholarship essay
7. Complete scholarship personal information form
8. Ask sponsors to confirm sending letter of recommendation
9. Remind coaches and recommendation writers to send outstanding letters
10. Complete online application, review, and submit

Selection Process: A selection committee from CBAA reviews all candidates and selects three recipients annually.

Required Materials:

1. Personal Information Form - Includes:
   • Name, school year, address, email, date of birth, phone numbers
   • Family information (parents' names, occupations, household income)
   • High school information (name, address, GPA, class rank, SAT/ACT scores)
   • Hockey information (coach name/contact, team manager name/contact, position, teams played on)
   • Financial aid information
   • Community involvement description
   • Extracurricular activities
   • Work history
   • Universities applied to and whether they have hockey programs
2. Essays:
   • Essay 1: "How has your experience playing hockey and your exposure to the sport of hockey assisted in your development as a student and as a person?" (400 word maximum)
   • Essay 2: "What other qualifications do you have that you believe make you eligible to be awarded with the Blackhawk Alumni Scholarship?" (400 word maximum)
3. Letters of Recommendation:
   • Coach's letter of recommendation (PDF only, max 20MB)
   • Additional teacher/mentor letter of recommendation (PDF only, max 20MB)
   • Second additional teacher/mentor letter of recommendation (PDF only, max 20MB)
4. Transcripts:
   • Current high school transcripts (PDF file only, max 20MB)
   • OR mail transcripts to:
   • Attention: CBAA Scholarship Program
   • P.O. Box 72159
   • Roselle, Illinois 60172

Submission Instructions:

• All fields in the application form are required
• Upload PDF files through online form
• Applicants should receive a confirmation message upon submission
• If no confirmation is received, review the application and resubmit
• Application deadline: February 1