Cherokee Nation Higher Education Scholarship Programs

CHEROKEE NATION HIGHER EDUCATION
SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMS

BASIC ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
Applicant must posses a Tribal Citizenship card showing citizenship in the Cherokee Nation.

Applicant must be attending or plan to attend a regionally accredited post-secondary institution. Accreditation will be verified from the 2006 Higher Education Directory; vo-tech schools are not supported by the higher education funds.

Applicant must apply for financial aid (Pell/FAFSA) at the selected institution, immediately after January 1.

SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMS

1. Cherokee Nation PELL Scholarship
   All Cherokee Nation tribal citizens, regardless of permanent residence, who qualify for Pell grant funding, are eligible for Bureau of Indian Affairs scholarship funding. This funding is divided equally to all Pell eligible students who complete the application process.


2. Cherokee Nation Scholarship
   Open to tribal citizens who are permanent residents of the 14-county Cherokee Nation Service Area and contiguous, not qualify for Pell grant funding. Funding is not available to students living outside these areas.


• First Preference
  Continuing students, students funded for current academic year by this program


• Second Preference
  Classification of new applicants (Senior, Junior, Sophomore, Freshman)


• Third Preference
  New applicant, academic performance and financial need of the applicant
  • Academic performance: high school GPA multiplied by the ACT/SAT or College Placement Test score
  • Financial need: determined by the expected family contribution (EFC) from the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Student Aid Report (SAR)


3. Haskell Indian Nations University Scholarship ( varies with program and student fees )
   Open to all Cherokee Nation tribal members, who are not eligible for Pell grant funding may apply to attend Haskell Indian Nations University in Lawrence , Kansas , at any time during the year. Cherokee Nation will fund the normal fees associated with enrollment at Haskell. This is the equivalent of a full scholarship including room and board to any Cherokee who wishes to attend Haskell.


4. Graduate School Scholarship
   Open to tribal citizens who are permanent residents of the 14-county Cherokee Nation Service Area or contiguous. Funding is not available to students living outside these areas.
   • First Preference
     Continuing students. Students funded by the Cherokee Nation Graduate Scholarship program for current academic year.
   • Second Preference
     Residence. Students whose permanent residency is within the Cherokee Nation area, which is defined as those counties within and contiguous to the Cherokee Nation boundaries.
   • Third Preference
     Academic performance. Academic performance will be determined by the cumulative undergraduate grade point average at time of undergraduate graduation.

HOW TO GET A CHEROKEE NATION SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION
Call: (800) 256-0671 ext. 5465 after January 15
Website: www.cherokee.org after February 1
Or visit http://scholarships.cherokee.org

WHEN IS THE DEADLINE FOR THE CHEROKEE NATION SCHOLARSHIP
Date to be determined. Complete applications must be postmarked or hand delivered on or before this date.

A complete application is defined as the scholarship application and all required supporting documents received at the same time on or prior to the established deadline. Regardless if it was received prior to the deadline if not complete or received after the deadline, application will not be considered for funding.

Application and supporting documents not turned into Higher Education's office or staff will not be accepted.

APPLICANT CALENDAR

HOW CAN I REACH THE HIGHER EDUCATION OFFICE
Phone: (918) 453-5000 ext 5465 or (800) 256-0671 ext. 5465