A Queens-based organization that aims to promote education among students from marginalized communities is currently offering scholarships.
Empower My Hood Inc., which was formed in 2019 and is based in Queens Village, has opened up applications for its third annual EMH Community Scholarship. High school students are eligible for a scholarship worth $1,000 and middle school students $500. Several scholarships are up for grabs.
The application deadline is Friday, Mar. 22.
Qualifying candidates include 8th grade graduating seniors that will be entering high school. Additionally, there are candidate spots for graduating high school students who have been accepted to a college/university or a vocational program.
To qualify, scholarship candidates must live in Queens and maintain a B average or better. In addition to filling out the application, students are expected to be available to participate in a virtual interview with the EMH scholarship committee.
Over the past two years the organization has awarded $18,000 in scholarships to local students through crowdfunding.
“The scholarship recipients continue to grow, in our first year we had about five recipients and last year that number almost tripled. It’s really amazing just to see we consistently do the work to serve the community and the community sees that and gets involved,” Atira B.E. Pressley, EMH’s director of brand strategy.
The organization also aims to connect students with professionals from similar backgrounds.
“Our goal is to expose students to young professionals who look like them who came from communities like them that were able to grow and scale their communities,” Pressley said.
