The 2024 Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship application is now available in Crawford County through the Community Foundation of Crawford County. The Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program (LECSP) will provide 147 scholarships statewide and 1 scholarship in Crawford County. LECSP scholarships may be used for otherwise unreimbursed full tuition, required fees, and a special allocation of up to $900 per year. The special allocation may cover the costs for required books and required equipment for four years of undergraduate study on a full-time basis leading to a baccalaureate degree at any eligible Indiana public or private nonprofit college or university.

The program, administered statewide by Independent Colleges of Indiana (ICI) and locally in Crawford County through the Community Foundationof Crawford County, is open to all Indiana residents who:

• graduate from an accredited Indiana high school by 2024 and receive their diploma no later than June 30, 2024;
• intend to pursue a full-time baccalaureate course of study at an eligible college or university in Indiana; and
• meet the criteria specific to their local community foundation. Visit the scholarship tab of our website for complete information regarding Crawford County’s application criteria.

Students can learn more about the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship in Crawford County and apply for this scholarship by visiting the scholarship tab to download an application, or visit the CFCC office. Applications must be completed and submitted to the Crawford County High School office by September 1, 2023 to be considered.

Applications will be evaluated on, but not limited to, the following criteria: personal statement of need, extenuating circumstances, personal essay, class rank, GPA, academic coursework, recommendation letter, leadership, and school, non-school activities and work experience.  3-5 finalistswill be invited for an interview by the Community Foundation of Crawford County LECSP selection committee, then a recommendation will be made to Independent Colleges of Indiana for final selection of the recipient. Scholarship recipients will be notified in December.

Lilly Endowment created LECSP for the 1997-98 school year and has supported the program every year since with tuition grants totaling more than $486 million. More than 5,000 Indiana students have received Lilly Endowment Community Scholarships since the program’s inception.

The primary purposes of LECSP are: 1) to help raise the level of educational attainment in Indiana; 2) to increase awareness of the beneficial roles Indiana community foundations can play in their communities; and 3) to encourage and support the efforts of current and past Lilly Endowment Community Scholars to engage with each other and with Indiana business, governmental, educational, nonprofit and civic leaders to improve the quality of life in Indiana generally and in local communities throughout the state.

The Community Foundation of Crawford County is again pleased to offer the LECSP to our graduating seniors. Susan Mason, Co-Chair of the Education Committee said, “We see this as an amazing opportunity for Crawford County. We have no other scholarship that compares to all that the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship program can offer. The benefits of this scholarship program far surpass immediate financial implications!”

Lilly Endowment Inc. is an Indianapolis-based, private philanthropic foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. Although the gifts of stock remain a financial bedrock of the Endowment, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff and location. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education and religion. The Endowment funds significant programs throughout the United States, especially in the field of religion. However, it maintains a special commitment to its founders’ hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana.

Since 1997, Independent Colleges of Indiana has administered the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program statewide with funding provided by Lilly Endowment Inc. Founded in 1948, ICI serves as the collective voice for the state’s 29 private, nonprofit colleges and universities. ICI institutions employ over 22,000 Hoosiers and generate a total local economic impact of over $5 billion annually. Students at ICI colleges have Indiana’s highest four-year, on-time graduation rates, and ICI institutions produce 30 percent of Indiana’s bachelor’s degrees while enrolling 20 percent of its undergraduates. 

The CFCC was founded in April 1998 by a volunteer Board of Directors that represented a variety of interests from Crawford County. To date, the CFCC has awarded more than $8 million in grants for programs/projects supporting Crawford County children and youth, education, housing, health and human services, the environment, technology advancements, literacy and the arts, and has awarded more than $2 million in scholarships benefiting Crawford County students. The CFCC currently manages more than 80 charitable endowment funds on behalf of families, individuals, corporations and non-profit organizations.

For more information on the Community Foundation of Crawford County, visit www.cf-cc.org or Facebook.com/CFCC4ever, email us at cf-cc@cf-cc.org, or call us at 812.365.2900.