The Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF) announced a $1 million commitment from The Walt Disney Company to provide scholarships to outstanding Hispanic students.
The donation is part of a three-year agreement between Disney and HSF that will create The Walt Disney Company-HSF Scholarship Program. With this generous support, Disney and HSF will help hundreds of students across the country realize their full potential as leaders in their chosen professions, and as volunteers who give back to the community. In addition to funding the scholarships, Disney will also support the bilingual, multimedia Public Service Advertising campaign that HSF has created in partnership with the Ad Council. The ads will appear across ABC and ESPN platforms, encouraging parents on how to prepare, plan, and pay for college.
“The Walt Disney Company is one of the most iconic and respected companies in the world, and we are thrilled to be working together,” said Fidel A. Vargas, President & CEO, Hispanic Scholarship Fund, who made the announcement at the #LATISM14 conference of Latinos in Tech Innovation & Social Media held in Anaheim, Calif. “Support from insightful corporate partners like The Walt Disney Company makes it possible for HSF to increase the number of college scholarships we are able to award to outstanding Hispanic students, and to expand the educational resources and services we offer to Latino parents and their children.”
“Education is the foundation upon which dreams are built, and increasing access to higher learning is an investment with infinite returns for individuals and society as a whole,” said Robert A. Iger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, The Walt Disney Company. “That’s why we’re committed to raising public awareness and supporting even more outstanding Hispanic students with scholarships that encourage and empower them to achieve their goals.”
Today, one-fourth of all public school students in the U.S. are Hispanic, and research shows that 69% of Hispanic high school graduates are now going directly to college – a rate that is higher than that of the general population.
“As a result of this unprecedented surge of Hispanic college-bound students, the need for information about college and financial resources available to students and families is greater than ever before,” said Mr. Vargas.
In addition to providing scholarships, HSF connects Hispanic students and parents with resources to help them navigate the journey to college and beyond. The organization’s new scholarship season is slated to reopen on January 1, 2015 and close on March 30, 2015. Students can begin the application process immediately by creating a personal profile on HSF’s website, HSF.net.
