Scholarship Opportunity Challenges Students to Discover Local Heroes
release date: January 11, 2021
Ten thousand dollars will be split between three student essayists this spring for the Stim Bullitt Civic Courage Scholarship, sponsored by The Seattle Public Library Foundation.
Submissions are now being accepted for the contest until March 15. The scholarship is hosted by The Seattle Public Library Foundation and funded by the family of the late Stimson Bullitt, a Seattle attorney, civil rights activist, and environmentalist.
The contest challenges college-bound high school students and current college students to write about a Washington state figure or group of people who effected change in their communities by demonstrating civic courage. The winner earns $5,000 for college tuition aid, while two runners-up win $2,500.
The top three essayists will also have their submissions catalogued in The Seattle Public Library’s Special Collections. Library patrons can read all the available essays by visiting the Seattle Room at Central Library.
“This is a critical moment in our nation’s history to explore what civic courage means,” says Jonna Ward, CEO of The Seattle Public Library Foundation. “We challenge students to develop their writing and research skills while learning about local heroes. And of course, participants can tap Library resources to help them complete their work!”
A panel of distinguished local authors pick the winners. Past winning essays covered Lt. Gov. Cyrus Habib, the Gang of Four, and Maru Mora-Villalpando.
More details, including the rules and eligibility requirements and resources for research, are available at the Foundation’s Stim Bullitt scholarship page.
ABOUT THE FOUNDATION
The Seattle Public Library Foundation is a nonprofit partner of the Library, providing a way for people who value libraries to contribute financial support and advocate for The Seattle Public Library, enhancing its benefit to our community and ensuring its long-term vitality.
The Foundation has raised more than $200 million since 1980 to expand the Library’s collections, build new and revitalized libraries, support free educational and cultural programs for all audiences, and update the Library’s technology resources.