Mrs. Knirck, the class counselor of 2010, is able to provide plentiful information to curious students. It is very informative if you talk to your counselor and build a strong relationship with him or her.

Q: What exactly are scholarships and what's the difference between financial aid and scholarships?

A: Scholarships are a type of financial aid. Financial aid is the umbrella term for loans, grants, and work studies. Scholarships, you don't have to pay back. Grants, you don't have to pay back. And loans, you have to pay back, it's self-explanatory. Scholarships are probably the best part of financial aid because you don't have to pay back.

Q: When should students apply for scholarships?

A: Well, 99% of scholarships are for seniors so next fall, you should become informed. However, there are varying deadlines for each scholarship.

Q: Where can you go for information on scholarships?

A: There are a number of websites that have information. The newspaper has some with blurbs of information especially the local organizations. We [the counselors] have two big boards where we post scholarships.

Q: What are some important information that students should know about scholarships?

A: Many want community service. They want to see that you do volunteer work which is becoming a big component of scholarships. Scholarships are hard work because it's a lot of filling out paperwork. Many people are too lazy to get the papers and do all the work. However, the process is tedious but very rewarding.

Q: Do you have any last thoughts for students applying for scholarships?

A: 1) Be aware. Once fall comes, make yourself very informed. It's always a shame when somebody misses an opportunity because they didn't know about a scholarship or just wasn't informed.

2) Be willing to do work. Be willing to fill out papers. [Student] Yang Hu was everywhere;he was applying for scholarships that I hadn't even heard of!  He actually got an essay one. Basically, be willing to willing to do some work.

Link back to the Scholarships Home Page