College Scholarship Program
Funding Amount
$2,500 renewable ($10,000 total per recipient)
Deadline
Deadline not published
Grant Type
Foundation
Deadline history & next window
- Cycle
- Annual
- Tracked since
- April 2026
Source: the cycle recorded on this listing. Confirm dates with the funder.
Can we apply?
Check your organization against each line. Taken from the listing; confirm with the funder's guidelines.
Eligible organizations
- Graduating seniors from Chicago and suburban schools
Other requirements
- DREAMers
- CCH youth leaders
- Former CCH legal aid clients
- Must be younger than age 24 as of application deadline
Overview
Geographic Scope: Chicago and suburban Illinois schools; nationwide for DREAMers and CCH participants
Award Amount: $2,500 per year (renewable), totaling $10,000 to complete bachelor's degree
Focus Areas: Educational support for students experiencing homelessness
Eligibility
- Graduating seniors from Chicago and suburban schools
- DREAMers
- CCH youth leaders
- Former CCH legal aid clients
- Must be younger than age 24 as of application deadline
- Must have succeeded in school despite coping with homelessness
- Must verify homelessness status
Program Details
- Five new winners selected annually
- Recipients may attend colleges/universities in Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin, and HBCUs
- $500 book awards available for scholarship recipients pursuing graduate study
- 20 scholarship recipients have graduated with bachelor's degrees as of 2020 (43% graduation rate)
- National comparison: Only 11% of students from lowest income bracket earned bachelor's by age 24
Funding Sources
- Associated Bank
- Jill L. Meinzer Scholarship Fund
- The Osa Foundation and Robin Lavin
- Susan W. Pearson Memorial Fund
- Sisters of Charity, BVM
- Private donors
How to Apply
Application Process
- Submission Method: Online or paper application
- Primary Deadline: Submit application with brief personal essays by Monday, April 27 at 5 p.m.
- Supplemental Materials Deadline: All required materials must be submitted by Friday, May 1 at 5 p.m.
Required Materials
- Completed application (online or paper)
- Personal essays answering specified questions (must follow exact word limits—cannot be shorter or longer)
- Official transcript
- Two letters of recommendation
- Homeless verification form
Essay Requirements
- Well-written answers to essay questions
- Applicants may draft essays in another document and copy/paste into online application
- Essay questions and word limits provided in application materials
Awards Event
- Annual scholarship awards ceremony (June 23 in 2020)
- Location varies by year
- Evening reception followed by awards presentation
Special Considerations
- Contact Christy Savellano to discuss extenuating circumstances related to school closures or other issues
What Chicago Coalition to End Homelessness actually gave
Source: IRS Form 990, 2025
- Grants in 2025
- 20
- Total given
- $1.41M
- Median grant
- $20K
- Range
- $12K–$1.05M
- By dollars: Illinois 100%. Top recipient cities: Chicago, IL; Maywood, IL.
- 0% of grants with a stated purpose were for general or operating support.
- 0% of recipients were new grantees, not repeat recipients.
Example grants
Matthew House · Chicago, IL
Small Shelter Fund
$23K
CASA Central Social Services · Chicago, IL
Small Shelter Fund
$22K
Good News Partners · Chicago, IL
Small Shelter Fund
$22K
Housing Forward · Maywood, IL
Small Shelter Fund
$22K
Breakthrough Urban Ministries · Chicago, IL
Small Shelter Fund
$20K
Focus Areas & Funding Uses
Fields of Work
- Homeless
- Education
- College prep
Categories
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