Recognizing the great lengths parents go to give their children a Catholic education, Knott Scholarship Funds is expanding its geographical footprint.
The charitable foundation recently announced changes to its criteria, making students who live in Allegany, Garrett and Washington counties eligible for its university and secondary school scholarships.
Originally, the scholarships were limited to students living in the Baltimore metropolitan area. Now students from the western portion of the Archdiocese of Baltimore are eligible to receive scholarships.
“We’ve been in existence for more than 40 years, and founder Henry Knott’s original thought was to focus on Baltimore City and the surrounding area,” said Knott Scholarship Funds Executive Director Mimie Helm. “We want to continue to promote Catholic education in the best way that we can. As times have changed, parents are commuting greater and greater distances to give their kids Catholic educations. We are constantly amazed at the lengths to which parents will go to drive their kids to a quality Catholic school.”
Knott Scholarships are awarded to “academically talented Catholic students” so that they will “become leaders in their communities, schools and the Catholic Church.”
Approximately 140 Knott Scholars per year receive awards, attending 33 Catholic institutions in the Archdiocese of Baltimore. Annually, the organization awards about $3.4 million in scholarships. There are more than 2,100 Knott Scholar alumni.
Jennifer Flinn, principal of the 265-student Bishop Walsh School in Cumberland, said it is welcome news for her school community.
“It’s a tremendous opportunity for students and families in this region,” Flinn said. “Many families struggle financially to provide a faith-based education for their children. We’re really excited about the possibilities because we have several students who will be good candidates for the scholarships.”
Flinn praised the Knott organizations for their generosity and aid to Catholic education, noting that the school recently added two computer labs through Knott grants.
“Knott funds have had a profound impact on our school,” she said.
Helm highlighted the lengths schoolteachers, administrators and parents go to in providing faith-based instruction to students in Catholic schools.
“Catholic education is a community of shared sacrifice and we wanted to do anything we could to help take the lid off for families,” Helm said.
Removing the geographical requirements from the scholarship offerings will allow the fund to offer more opportunities to high school-age and college students in the western vicariate of the archdiocese.
Students from that area will be free to commute to Baltimore-area prep schools or use the scholarships to attend Bishop Walsh High School in Cumberland or St. John’s Catholic Prep in Frederick County. College students from that western Maryland region will have access to funds to help with tuition to Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, Loyola University Maryland in Baltimore or Notre Dame of Maryland University in Baltimore.
Geographic restrictions will continue to focus the fund’s scholarships to elementary students in the immediate Baltimore area.
Secondary scholarship applications are being accepted from Jan. 20 to Feb. 27.
For more information, visit knottscholar.org
Email Gerry Jackson at gjackson@CatholicReview.org
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