Imagine America Foundation Releases Annual Report Detailing Significant Growth of Scholarships for Students Attending For-profit Schools
Washington, D.C. (May 12, 2011) – With the nation still fighting a bitter battle against a sluggish economy, hundreds of thousands of Americans are continuing to pursue higher education as a means to improve their future. And this tremendous growth is making a noticeable impact on the Imagine America Foundation, which has released its Annual Report that details its rising prominence as a scholarship provider to students attending “for-profit” schools.
Featuring profiles and quotations from many of the thousands of students the Foundation has supported financially through its scholarship and awards programs, this year’s report highlights several landmarks set by the organization in 2010. Last year, the Imagine American Scholarship and Award Program received more applications than ever before. This achievement involved students of varying ages and backgrounds who are part of programs such as the Foundation’s High School Program, the Military Award Program (MAP) program, and the Adult Skills Education Program (ASEP.)
Among the Foundation’s greatest successes in the past year has been the increase in applications for the ASEP program for adult students. In the first year of existence, the program experienced a 35 percent growth in applications received. With the support of nearly 600 participating colleges and 15,000 high school counselors, the Imagine America High School Scholarship Program also assisted nearly 10,000 graduating high school seniors.
“As the economy continues to struggle, more Americans are turning to higher education to improve their future,” said Robert L. Martin, President of the Imagine America Foundation. “The significant growth we’ve seen in participation in our scholarship programs shows that we’re providing the support that helps career college students achieve the educational goals that can change their lives.”
The Foundation attributes the substantial increase in scholarships applications to an increase in visibility that has helped the organization reach more students. In 2010, more than 300 websites link to the Imagine America Foundation website increasing visibility to students, parents, and high school counselors.
Along with its scholarship assistance offerings, the Foundation also conducts research projects focused on the for-profit education sector. This year IAF surveyed its own scholarship recipients who were the best audience to judge whether or not the organization’s scholarship and award programs have been successful. Those students were surveyed by the esteemed research organization, Wonderlic. We were excited to find that 96.8 percent would recommend the scholarship and award programs to a friend.
Now that more students than ever before are having to use student loans to finance their education, the Imagine America Foundation created an easy-to-use interactive online tool – Financial Planning Made Simple (FPMS) to help protect their future. On March 1, this tool was be integrated into all Imagine America Scholarship and Award Programs as a way to help borrowers balance their budget and avoid incurring insurmountable debt after graduation.
For more information about the Annual Report or the Imagine America Foundation, contact Robert L. Martin, President of the Imagine America Foundation, at (202) 336-6758, bobm@imagine-america.org, or visit www.imagine-america.org.
Contact: Robert L. Martin, President, Imagine America Foundation
Phone: (202) 336-6758
E-mail: bobm@imagine-america.org
About the Imagine America Foundation
The Imagine America Foundation (IAF), established in 1982, is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing scholarships for education, research and training support for the career college sector. Since its inception, the Foundation has provided over $50 million in scholarship and award support for graduating high school seniors, adult learners and U.S. military personnel attending career colleges nationwide through its award-winning Imagine America® programs. The Foundation also publishes vital research publications for the higher education sector, honors achievement in career education and offers faculty development training. For more information about the Imagine America Foundation’s programs, please visit www.imagine-america.org.