Scholarship

College Scholarship Opportunity

The Chamber is offering a wonderful opportunity to full time students, residents of six counties (Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will) in Illinois, of Italian ancestry between the last year of high school and the last year of a fully accredited four-year college or university, to obtain two separate $1,000 scholarships to be paid to the four-year fully accredited college or university of their choice this coming fall.

Click Here for the Scholarship Application Form

Please make your students aware of this opportunity and have them fill out the application form here with attached. Beside the application form, students must submit the following items:

1. A letter including a biographical account of themselves, explanation of their Italian ancestry and their reason for wanting the scholarship and to what purpose they plan to use it.
2. Two letters of recommendation: one from a teacher and one from their counselor.
3. The most recent transcript of school credits available.
4. Photo in color or black and white (cannot be returned).

Additional application forms can be obtained from the Chamber upon request.

Due date for all applications begins now and ends on July 15, 2010.

All scholarship applications are reviewed by the Italian American Chamber of Commerce Scholarship Committee. Winners will be notified by September 13, 2010.

PLEASE DO NOT CALL IN THE INTERIM.  Print application from the web and send all documents together to:

Attn: Melissa Passalacqua
Italian American Chamber of Commerce
500 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 506
Chicago, IL 60611

Minimum Requirements

• Must be a resident of one of the following six counties in Illinois: Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, Will, or McHenry. At least one parent must be of Italian ancestry and the applicant must be a full time student between the last year of high school and last year of a fully accredited four-year college or university.
• Must show proof of a minimum grade point average as follows: 3.5 on a 4 point scale or 4.5 on a 5 point scale.

Guidelines for Scholarship Award

Sincerity of applicant's interest in attending or finishing college as evidenced by his or her personal letter, the application form and two letters of recommendation.

• What type of study has been taken: regular; honors; advanced study; AP courses; remedial courses; correspondence courses, etc.
• Rank in class by number or percentile will be a consideration.
• Honors received in athletic or academic competitions.
• Extra curricular activities.
• Other scholarships applied for or received.
• Scores achieved in school aptitiude or college entrance exams.
• Plans to work to supplement budget and college expenses.
• Financial need of the student is secondary to the academic achievement and personal merit of the student.
• Scholarships are available to both member and non-members of the Chamber.
• The scholarship is a one-time scholarship for each indivdual.
• No sex differentiation will be a consideration for awarding scholarships.
• Good moral character and scholastic achievement will be the basic criteria for the award.
• Other considerations: evidence of values, interests, special talents, personal character, independence and relative maturity, rapport with others.
• Decisions as rendered by our scholarship committee are considered final.