Maker Scholarship Programs

A program to encourage the next generation of makers through

collaboration between community makerspaces and public and

private education systems

PROGRAM GUIDE FOR

COMMUNITY MAKERSPACE LEADERS

AND EDUCATORS

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CREDITS

The majority of this Program Guide was written by

Greg Richardson, founder of Civitium, LLC and co-

founder of 7hills Makerspace in Rome, Georgia.

Contributions were made by Bailey White (Civitium),

Charlie Auvermann (DA Dawson County), Courtney

Bryant (Drew Charter School), Dr. John Grout

(Campbell School of Business, Berry College), Tricia

Steele (SAI Digital), Eric Parker (theClubhou.se), Ed

Morrison (Barrow County Schools), Robert Betzel

(SparkMacon), Roy Craft (Georgia Tech Professional

Education), Caitlyn Dooley (Georgia State

University), Tanya Hyman (Durham Middle School,

Cobb County), Gilda Lyon (Georgia Department of

Education), and Owen Kinney (Darlington School).

The development of this Program Guide was funded

by the National Telecommunications Information

Administration NTIA through the Georgia

Technology Authority Digital Georgia Program.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Credits .................................................................................................................................................................................. 1

Purpose of this Guide ....................................................................................................................................................... 1

Background .......................................................................................................................................................................... 2

Overview of the Process ................................................................................................................................................. 4

Develop the Program ....................................................................................................................................................... 5

Major Tasks .................................................................................................................................................................... 5

Collaboration with Schools ........................................................................................................................................ 6

Special Considerations ................................................................................................................................................. 6

Recruit Sponsors and Funding ........................................................................................................................................ 8

Candidate Organizations ............................................................................................................................................. 8

National Corporate Scholarship Programs ............................................................................................................. 8

Program Materials ......................................................................................................................................................... 9

Sponsorship Agreement ............................................................................................................................................ 10

Launch and Promote the Program .............................................................................................................................. 11

Channels ........................................................................................................................................................................ 11

Publishing Your Scholarship ...................................................................................................................................... 11

Program SurveyS ......................................................................................................................................................... 12

Recruit, Evaluate and Select Students ......................................................................................................................... 14

Method of Selection ................................................................................................................................................... 14

Evaluating Financial Need .......................................................................................................................................... 14

Selection Criteria ........................................................................................................................................................ 15

The Application ........................................................................................................................................................... 15

Laws and Regulations ................................................................................................................................................. 16

Addendum – Sample Maker Scholarship Application .............................................................................................. 17

Addendum – Sample scholarship sponsor agreement ............................................................................................ 20

Addendum – Sample Student Nomination Form ..................................................................................................... 22

Addendum – Sample Program Announcement Email ............................................................................................. 24

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PURPOSE OF THIS GUIDE

The purpose of this guide is to provide community-based makerspaces with a framework to develop, implement

and administer scholarship programs for high-school and college students to receive maker-memberships. In

developing this framework, our goal was to make it rigid enough to be a starting point for makerspace leaders, but

flexible enough to be tailored to the unique needs of each makerspace, education system, and community.

Makerspace leaders are encouraged to customize this guide to their own needs.

In addition to laying out an overall framework, this document provides guidelines, suggestions, best practices,

sample materials, and links to additional resources.

For expanded and update information about this program, readers are encouraged to register at

www.MakeNet.org

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BACKGROUND

The Maker Movement is a globally-expanding technological and creative learning trend that accelerates the

adoption of technology, workforce development, community development and economic growth. Makerspaces are

local grassroots groups/organizations that tap passions to explore, stimulate creativity, share their knowledge and

creativity, invent and build products, create businesses and improve themselves and their communities.

Figure 1 - Source: Make Magazine

Makerspaces, sometimes referred to as hackerspaces, hackspaces, and fablabs provide members easy access to

both costly equipment and the knowledge and experience of local makers. And, makers have access to next

generation digital tools and evolving technologies such as 3D printing, robotics, microprocessors, wearable tech, e-

textiles, and “smart” materials. The Maker Movement creates affordable and sometimes free versions of these

inventions, while sharing tools and ideas locally and online to create a vibrant, collaborative community of like

minds for problem-solving, innovating, business-building, creating, exploring and growing through doing. The

continued global emphasis on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and its extension for the

Arts (STEAM), and the encouragement of curiosity and initiative, have made the connection between the Maker

Movement and education a national priority.

The White House held a Makerfaire in June of this year that “celebrate[d] every maker — from students

learning STEM skills to entrepreneurs launching new businesses to innovators powering the renaissance in

American manufacturing.”1

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Cognizant, Intel, Maker Media, Pixar, Google and other leading companies created the MakerEducation

Initiative to “create more opportunities for all young people to develop confidence, creativity, and interest

in science, technology, engineering, math, art, and learning as a whole through making.”2

Makerspaces exist in at least a dozen Georgia communities: Albany, Alpharetta, Atlanta, Athens, Augusta,

Cumming, Dawsonville, Decatur, Lawrenceville, Macon, Marietta, Rome, Savannah and Stone Mountain.

These pioneer spaces have been established and sustained by citizens and local grassroots community

support.

Makerspaces are in the planning phase in other cities such as Brunswick, Columbus, Savannah, and

Warner Robins.

7hills Makerspace in Rome was named “One of the most interesting makerspaces in America” by Make

Magazine.3

There is demonstrated support and passion for Georgia Makers: a group of makers in Macon raised more

than $11,000 from their community through a crowdfunding effort.4 Decatur makers raised more than

$22,000 in a similar project.5

Georgia makers have participated in and led workshops at events throughout the state, including the

Georgia Municipal Association’s (GMA’s) annual conference, the Digital Economy Summit and others.

Makers from Georgia led a panel in San Francisco at the industry’s first “Makercon” event – the only state

represented at that conference.

Macon Makers received a grant for $125,000 to host a national level maker faire in 2015.6

Makerspaces in Georgia have held hundreds of hackathons, training classes, meetups and more.

Berry College in Rome has developed a “Creative Technologies” minor program, the first of its type in

the nation, within its Campbell School of Business.7 More than 70 students have gone through the

program, learning about design, 3D printing, fabrication, physical computing and more.

Maker Faire Atlanta is entering its fifth year in 2015. The first three years were Mini-Maker Faires hosted

by Georgia Tech. October 4-5th of 2014 215 Makers came together in Decatur, GA with 120 volunteers

and 30,000 participants making it the third largest Maker Faire in the U.S. and the largest and most

accessible Featured Maker Faire in the country.

Georgia State University has proposed to the Board of Regents a Master of Arts program on Creative and

Innovative Education in the College of Education, with partnerhips with the Robinson School of Business,

College of Arts and Sciences, and Andrew Young School's Non-profit Management Program. The

proposal was approved by GSU and is under consideration by the BoR.

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OVERVIEW OF THE PROCESS

We propose the following process as a guideline for how makerspaces may go about the design, development and

administration of a scholarship program.

The process starts with developing a vision and goals for your program, determining the number and types of

scholarships that will be grants, developing a detailed budget, and beginning the process of forming partnerships

with schools, educators, sponsors and others.

Next, you will need to recruit sponsors and secure funding to support the program and budget you developed in

the first step. This step will also include developing and executing contracts, as well as negotiating agreements with

sponsors.

Next, you will launch and promote your program. This will include developing launch materials, issuing press

releases, coordinating communication, and engaging with the community to promote the program.

After launching your program, you will likely engage in recruiting students and educators, soliciting scholarship

applications, evaluating applications, selecting winners, and coordinating with sponsors.

Finally, you will engage in efforts to administer your program over the term of the scholarships. This will include

student orientation, surveying students and educators at the beginning and end of the program, defining and

developing activities for students and educators, and providing equipment, supplies and resources during the term.

Develop the Program

• Vision and Goals

• Number and Types of Scholarships

• Budget

• Partnerships

Recruit Sponsors and Funding

• Targeting

• Outreach

• Negotiation of Agreements

Launch and Promote the Program

• Launch Announcement

• PR

• Communications

• Community Engagement

Recruit, Evaluate and Select Students

• Application Process

• Review Process

• Selection Process

• Coordination with Sponsors

Administer the Program

• Student Orientation

• Up-Front Survey

• Project Selection

• Completion Survey

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DEVELOP THE PROGRAM

MAJOR TASKS

Forming the Team. Who from the makerspace and community will participate in developing,

implementing, and administering the scholarship program? What roles will each play? Will local educators,

business leaders, elected officials or others be involved, and if so, how? When will the team meet and

what will be its regular agenda?

Defining the Program’s Goals. Is the motivation of your program to foster community, economic, or

workforce development? Is it to stimulate entrepreneurial activity? Is it to encourage STEM-related

involvement by students? Is it to introduce maker-culture to educators or the community at large? Or is it

simply to recruit additional members to the makerspace?

Deciding on the Types of Scholarships. Will scholarships be awarded merit- or need-based criteria?

Will they be for six months, one year or longer? How many scholarships will be awarded? How will this

be broken down by K-12, college, university or other types of students?

Choosing an Open or Closed Selection Process. You may elect to use an open application process

where students apply for the scholarship. Or a closed process where you work with your education

partners to hand-select students for participation. Or a hybrid nomination-based approach where you

allow anyone to nominate students, and you (possibly with your education and sponsor partners) decide

from the list of nominees. This decision will determine a lot about how you launch and promote your

program, and of course how the selection process is managed.

Defining a Schedule. When will the program launch? When will applications be due? When will you

notify winners? When will the scholarship term begin and end? A project schedule is critical to effectively

manage a program such as this.

Creating a Budget. How much funding will be required? Where will this funding come from? Will local

governments provide financial support? Will grants be pursued? Will private-sector companies commit

resources and funding? Will crowdfunding be used to anchor or to augment funding for the program? Will

funds be allocated for equipment, supplies, curriculum development or other purposes? How does the

space’s structure (for profit, not for profit) affect these issues?

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Getting the Word Out. How will the program be communicated and marketed? Will it have a project

website, a Facebook Page, a Twitter account? Will local schools assist in promoting the program to their

student population?

COLLABORATION WITH SCHOOLS

Makerspaces are encouraged to begin the process of collaborating with local public and private K-12 schools,

charter schools, colleges, universities and other educational institutions during the program development phase.

How does a makerspace Identify schools to work with? A great place to start is

http://www.education.com/schoolfinder/ SchoolFinder allows you to enter your city or community name and get a

list of all the schools in the area. Another approach is to perform an Internet search for “board of education” and

your county name – most, but not all schools are managed at a county-level. Try contacting the board of education

and inquiring about which, if any schools in the area have maker programs, makerspaces within the schools,

robotics programs and so on.

When approaching a school district, it is usually a good idea to begin at the central/district office before reaching

out to individual schools. If the district has a technical or vocational academy, this can also be a good place to start.

Some districts have certified technical integration personnel that are sometimes dedicated to Science, Technology,

Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). District grant writers and/or special project managers may also offer

additional perspectives.

It may also be useful to approach individual schools and teachers directly. Don’t rely solely on top-down

approaches to recruit your education partners.

SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS

As you begin the process of developing your program, some special considerations are important to keep in mind:

1. Makerspaces are not formal education environments. There are typically no teachers, formal classes,

lectures, homework assignments, or even set schedules. This may create a challenge as you award

scholarships to students. What if they don’t spend time at the space? What if they don’t know where to

start? Will your regular members feel they are acting as “substitute teachers” when asked for assistance,

or will they be thrilled to share their knowledge? There are no concrete answers to these questions, and

the situations will be unique to each project, but it is important to begin thinking through the implications

for your program.

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2. Makerspace leaders may also want to explore distance learning opportunities where video conferencing

from the space to the classroom is used to extend the reach of the program, or introduce new students

who did not receive scholarships to the space. As an alternative, makerspaces may want to conduct

classes or other activities at the schools, with the cooperation of educators of course. This approach

could also help to address challenges with transportation and supervision.

3. There are practical issues to consider as well, mainly related to minors. You will need to develop a policy

for their participation. Can they work in the space unsupervised, without a parent or guardian? Will this

necessitate background checks or bonding requirements for members who will be present? Will they be

given a key? Is there equipment that they will not be allowed to operate? How will transportation be

handled? Will students be prohibited from using certain tools, or required to take certain training first?

In all of these areas, it is wise to meet on a regular basis with your education partners and each minor

student’s parent or guardian. The above issues can be addressed, documented, and communicate to minor

students. You may also consider granting special access, membership or other benefits to parents or

teachers who are willing to contribute to mentorship or chaperoning for minor students.

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RECRUIT SPONSORS AND FUNDING

So, you have a program developed, a budget in place, education partners lined up, and maybe even some promising

students identified. The next question is “where will the funding come from?” A typical membership at a

community makerspace ranges from $500 to $1,000 per year, or more. Supporting new students under your

scholarship program will inevitably result in higher costs for the space. Students will use more utilities. They will

need supplies. They may need new equipment to support the projects they make.

Securing funds to support your program will require a focused effort. Potential sponsors will need to be identified,

qualified and prospected. Proposals will need to be submitted. Agreements will need to be put in place.

CANDIDATE ORGANIZATIONS

Some of the types of organization that may support a scholarship program include:

Local Governments (city and county). Local governments may contribute to formal scholarship programs,

like the City of Atlanta’s Mayor’s Youth program.8 Where such programs don’t exist, you can simply

approach your city or county representative and introduce your program to them.

Development Authorities - Local governments create authorities as a means of providing a wide range of

services to their citizens. One of the more common types is the Development Authority (DA). DA’s are

typically focused on economic development and business recruitment. They exist at various levels in

Georgia: downtown area, city, county, and even multi-county. You can find a complete list of the DAs in

Georgia at http://www.dca.state.ga.us/development/research/programs/lga.asp

Businesses/Corporations. One of the more promising avenues may be to approach local and regional

businesses in your area. Many have budgets in place to support various types of community projects. It

may help to position your program in the context of its potential impact to workforce development, as

many companies in Georgia struggle to recruit talent locally. You may even consider tailoring your

scholarship program, possibly on an individual student level, to a particular career area to align with these

interests. To identify potential companies, you may want to work with your local Chamber of Commerce.

NATIONAL CORPORATE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMS

In addition to local businesses in your area, many large, national corporations have scholarship programs. Below is

a list of some of the most well-known. Depending on the focus and geographic scope of your program, these

organizations may or may not be good prospects.

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Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) U.S. Scholarship Program

Application Deadlines: January 20, Annually

http://www.rmhc.org/rmhc-us-scholarships

Coca-Cola All-State Academic Team Scholarship for Community Colleges

Application Deadlines: December 02, Annually

http://www.coca-colascholarsfoundation.org/

Dell Scholars Program

Application Deadlines: January 15, Annually

http://www.dellscholars.org/

Gates Millennium Scholars Program

Application Deadlines: January 14, Annually

https://www.gmsp.org/

Coca-Cola Scholars Program Scholarship

Application Deadlines: October 31, Annually

http://www.coca-colascholarsfoundation.org/

PROGRAM MATERIALS

When approaching sponsors, your program will have more legitimacy if you have professional marketing materials.

In addition, these materials can also be valuable “leave behinds” that allow the individuals you meet with to engage

others in their organization. Some of the types of material that will be useful include:

Program Brochure – This is a one or two-page document that summarizes your program, its goals, value

to students, expected benefits for sponsors, costs, etc. Be specific about what the sponsor is being asked

to commit, and what outcomes are expected. It is also important to illustrate, possibly using infographics,

what the program has accomplished to date. How much has it raised? How many students have gone

through the program? What have been the results?

Slide Presentation – This is a PowerPoint, Keynote, Prezi or other type of presentation that lays out the

program, and covers in more depth the information summarized on the brochure. Use more pictures

than words here, and make sure the flow of the presentation moves from generals to specifics.

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Project Profiles – These are single-page profiles for maker projects that have been led by students who

received scholarships (ideally) or makerspace members. These materials, while very specific, help potential

sponsors visualize the tangible outcomes of the program.

SPONSORSHIP AGREEMENT

Once you have a commitment from a sponsor, you will need to get an agreement in place that spells out the terms

of their sponsorship.

How much funding will the sponsor commit?

When will the funding be made available? What milestones must be met?

What will be the term of the agreement?

Are there any sponsor-specific criteria for the selection of students?

What authority, if any, will sponsors have to select students?

What reporting requirements do they have?

A sample sponsorship agreement in included with this guide as an Addendum – Sponsorship Agreement.

Obviously it will need to be customized to fit your situation and the terms of your arrangement with your

sponsor. It also recommended that you seek legal counsel before entering into any binding agreement.

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LAUNCH AND PROMOTE THE PROGRAM

How aggressively you promote your program will depend on what approach you have decided to take. If you are

using a closed, student-nomination model, you only need to engage those who are being asked to nominate

students. On the other hand, if you are using an open, application-based process, you may want to solicit interest

from the largest audience possible. Another alternative is to use a “blind” outside committee to nominate

students.

CHANNELS

Makerspaces leaders and members tend to be heavy users of social media, and often have extensive networks. Of

course there are many channels to announce and promote a program such as this. The common ones include

email, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn. Which ones to use is a matter of personal preference.

Other, more localized approaches include:

Having your education partners send out or post an announcement about the scholarship opportunity.

Having the information placed on school websites and approach local Engineering, Robotics, or Art

Teachers at the High School level.

Giving out flyers or posters to be put around schools.

Using the email and other distribution channels of organizations who sponsor your program.

Asking existing makerspace members to send notifications through their individual channels.

PUBLISHING YOUR SCHOLARSHIP

Many scholarship databases accept submissions of new and updated awards through online forms. You can submit

your scholarship to the FastWeb scholarship database, for example, through their Post Your Scholarship page.9

After the award passes their verification process, it will be added to their database. FastWeb is the most popular

database because they automatically notify their users about new awards that match the user's profile.

When using these services, make sure your award criteria targets the students you want to attract, such as

specifying the geographic area of residence, school or program of study. Otherwise you may receive more

applications than you can handle.

FastWeb does have specific requirements that makerspaces should consider:

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Application does not ask students for a social security number or credit card number.

Scholarship does not charge a fee to apply or reapply.

Corporate contact information, such as address, phone number and/or email is easily accessible to

students for further inquiries.

Scholarship does not display ads or other competitor scholarships.

Scholarship URL links directly to the specific scholarship page.

Scholarship page must clearly outline all eligibility criteria and/or required materials necessary for students

to apply and outline scholarship winner selection process and/or judging criteria.

If you claim to be a not-for-profit organization, FastWeb has the right to verify your 501 ©(3) status.

PROGRAM SURVEYS

It may be useful to conduct surveys with the students and educators receiving scholarships at both the bginning

and end of the scholarship term. This can help in refining the approach to your program over time. These surveys

will likely vary based on the specifics of each makerspace program, however there are a number of common

questions and topics you may want to think about.

What did you think of your makerspace experience?

…the space and its resources?

…the interaction with other students and educators?

…meetings you participated in?

…classes and workshops?

…mentors and advisors?

…overall: the whole program this year?

For students:

How much help did you get from your mentor(s)?

What part of the makerspace was the most fun for you?

What was the least fun or most frustrating?

Would you sign up as a member of the Makerspace again in the future?

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For Educators:

How many projects did you help with?

How engaged were the students?

If you could change one thing about the program, what would it be?

Would you sign up as a member of the Makerspace again in the future?

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RECRUIT, EVALUATE AND SELECT STUDENTS

The selection of students to participate in a scholarship program is obviously one of its most important elements

of your program. This section will provide guidelines and best practices to help makerspaces develop and

communicate a student selection process.

METHOD OF SELECTION

A makerspace may choose to award scholarships based on a variety of approaches, including:

Merit-based: These awards are based on a student's academic, artistic, or other abilities, and may factor in

a student’s extracurricular activities and community service record.

Need-based: These awards are based on the student and family's financial ability to pay for makerspace

membership.

Student-specific: These are scholarships for which student must initially qualify based upon gender, race,

or many other student-specific factors. Gender and minority scholarships are a common award in this

category.

Career-specific: These are scholarships to students who plan to pursue a specific field of study. Often,

these are awarded to students who pursue careers in high-need areas.

EVALUATING FINANCIAL NEED

If your makerspace decides to offer needs-based scholarships, the simplest method of evaluating a family's financial

need is to piggyback off of an existing method of means-testing. Some of the more common methods include:

Comparing the family's income and family size to the Poverty Line. 2014 standards can be found at

http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/14poverty.cfm

The Expected Family Contribution (EFC) as calculated by the Free Application for Federal Student Aid

(FAFSA). This is a measure of a family's ability to pay for a child's college education, but it can be used for

a makerspace program as well. The lower the EFC score, the greater the family's need. Usually the EFC is

used in conjunction with the Cost of Attendance (COA), since financial need is the difference between

costs and ability to pay (i.e., Financial Need = COA - EFC). Additional information can be found at

http://www.finaid.org/fafsa/

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Several major award programs have found FinAid's Quick EFC calculator to be helpful in assessing financial

need, as it is simpler than the full Federal Need Analysis Methodology. The calculator can be found at

http://www.finaid.org/calculators/quickefc.phtml

SELECTION CRITERIA

Your makerspace should develop written selection criteria to determine who the scholarships will be ultimately

awarded to. The selection criteria are the standards that will be used when reviewing applications from potential

students. It is recommended that the selection criteria be as flexible as possible.

The criteria you use should support the purpose of the scholarship. It should not contain restrictions or

discriminatory provisions by law. Depending on the category of scholarship (e.g. merit-based, need-based), criteria

may include financial need, achievement, geographic location and demographics. A sample form for establishing

your makerspace’s scholarship criteria is provided with this guide as an Addendum – Sample Selection Criteria.

Please note: you may choose to consider more criteria than what is listed in the on this form - it is not meant to

be all-inclusive.

THE APPLICATION

Once your makerspace has set the criteria for the scholarship recipients, you will need to create an application.

Examples of scholarship applications can be found online and used as a template in designing your own forms. A

sample is provided with this guide as an Addendum.

In addition to the basic information collected on your application, financial need forms, etc., you may decide to

incorporate one or more of the following into the application and selection process:

Personal interview

Letter(s) of reference

Character evaluation form

Student essay.

Student Plan of Action. You may consider asking students to submit a plan for how they will us their time

at the makerspace. This might be useful in determining how committed the student would be.

High school or college transcripts

As an alternative, you might consider using the Scholarship Data Standard published by The National Scholarship

Providers Association, and intended to help scholarship providers create, manage, and access online scholarship

applications.

The Scholarship Data Standard is a royalty-free industry standard that helps more students get funds for college by

allowing them to quickly and easily re-use their scholarship applications between many scholarship providers

without retyping their information.10 Since the standard defines an electronic schema for scholarship applications, it

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also allows scholarship providers to automatically process scholarship applications regardless of where they

originate.

Figure 2 - Source: Scholarship Data Standard

LAWS AND REGULATIONS

IRS rules related to scholarship programs are designed to make sure that programs benefit a broad charitable class

of beneficiaries and that the process is nondiscriminatory. For example, you can’t set up a scholarship fund to

award a family member or restrict your eligibility requirements so that only your favorite neighborhood student

qualifies. The penalty for noncompliance could be a hefty excise tax or a loss of tax-exempt status (if your

makerspace is a non-profit). For more information, see Laws and Regulations Affecting Scholarship Programs11 and visit

the IRS Web site at www.irs.gov.

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ADDENDUM – SAMPLE MAKER SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION

(Makerspace Logo)

(Makerspace Name) is pleased to offer a one-year Maker Scholarship to eligible students

Eligibility

Students who meet the following criteria are eligible to apply for the Maker Scholarship. The candidate:

student at a public or private high school (grades 9-12), charter school, college, or university. Home-

schooled students may be considered on a case-by-case basis.

.

‐time in a U.S. high‐school, has graduated

from a U.S. high school or has obtained their GED at the time of application (attach transcripts or official record);

OR is enrolled full‐time as a college student at the undergraduate level with a minimum grade point average of 2.5

at the time of application (attach transcripts or official record).

Application Process

Application materials must be received by (Insert Deadline Time) on (Insert Deadline Date), in order to be

considered. The following materials should be submitted:

1. Completed application form.

2. A typed essay (no more than two pages double spaced) addressing one of the following topics:

Describe a maker project you have led or worked on and its influence on you.

Why should you be selected over other students for this scholarship?

What are your career aspirations and why?

3. One letter of reference or recommendation from a teacher, coach, or other adult who is not an immediate

relative.

Selection Process

Recipients will be selected by (Insert Name of Selection Group or Individuals) based on application materials

provided. All scholarship applicants will be notified of the makerspace’s decision by (Insert Notification Date).

Purpose of Scholarship

To provide financial assistance to a student with an interest in pursuing makerspace membership.

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Application Form

(Makerspace Logo) (Makerspace Name) Scholarship Application Form

Please complete this application form. Information must be typed or printed directly on this form. Please put an

asterisk by our preferred mailing address, if applicable.

Student Name _____________________________________________ Age ________________

School Name _________________________________________________________________

School address, city, state

____________________________________________________________________________________

Home address

____________________________________________________________________________________

Telephone

____________________________________________________________________________________

E‐mail address

____________________________________________________________________________________

Parent or Guardian’s Name ___________________________________________

Parent or Guardian’s email address _________________________________________________________

Overall GPA _____________________________________

Major, if applicable _______________________________

Expected graduation date __________________________

Areas of Study/Interest

____________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

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Extracurricular Activities

____________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

Jobs/Volunteer Work

____________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

Family Care Responsibilities

_________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

Community Involvement

___________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

Are there other circumstances that should be considered when reviewing your application?

____________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

Application materials must be received by (Insert Deadline Date), in order to be considered.

Send completed application materials to:

(Makerspace Name)

Attn: (Contact Name)

(Contact Information)

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ADDENDUM – SAMPLE SCHOLARSHIP SPONSOR AGREEMENT

This agreement is made this _________________ day of ________________________, 20___, by and

between _____________________________________ (the Sponsor), having a current address at

________________________________________ in the city of ___________________________ in the

state of ____________________________ with the zip code of _________________and

_____________________________________ (the Makerspace) having a current address at

________________________________________ in the city of ___________________________ in the

state of ____________________________ with the zip code of _________________.

NOW THEREFORE, the Makerspace and the Sponsor agree as follows:

1. The Sponsor hereby deposits with the Makerspace the sum of _______________ dollars to support the Maker

Scholarship Fund (the Fund). The Fund is to be used to provide one or more annual scholarship awards to

specified recipients.

2. The Sponsor hereby authorizes the Makerspace to solicit applications annually for scholarships to be awarded

annually in the name of the ________________________________________________ Fund.

3. The Sponsor designates the following eligibility and selection criteria to be used in screening applicants for the

___________________________________________ Fund in addition to the eligibility requirements placed

on all applicants by the Makerspace:

(a) ___________________________________________,

(b) ___________________________________________.

(c) ___________________________________________.

4. (A) _____________________________, The Sponsor authorizes the Makerspace to make the final recipient

selections(s) for the ______________________________________________________ Fund,

OR

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(B) ___________________________________The Sponsor reserves the right to make the final recipient

selection(s) for the ____________________________________________ Fund from applications previously

screened by the Makerspace.

5. The Makerspace agrees to provide an annual report to the Sponsor relative to fiscal and scholarship recipient

information.

6. The Sponsor agrees to provide the Makerspace with ongoing current contact information, enabling the

Makerspace to meet the stipulation of this agreement indefinitely.

WITNESS the execution hereof by the undersigned, duly authorized designate of the Makerspace and Sponsor.

_______________________ _____________________

(Sponsor Representative) (Makerspace Representative)

_______________________ _____________________

(Date) (Date)

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ADDENDUM – SAMPLE STUDENT NOMINATION FORM

Maker Scholarship Program

Student Nomination Form

A. Nominee Information

Student Name

M.I.

School Attended

Parent/Guardian Name

Phone Number

B. Questionnaire

Tell us about this student? School. Age. Academic performance.

Why are you nominating this student for a Maker Scholarship? How would this student benefit?

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Do you anticipate this student will qualify for financial assistance?

Are you familiar with any hobbies or other special interests this student has that may be relevant?

C. Nominated By

This is optional. Students submitted anonymously will be

considered. Please enter your name below and sign.

Print Name Date

Signature Date

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ADDENDUM – SAMPLE PROGRAM ANNOUNCEMENT EMAIL

Dear <name>,

ABC Makerspace is excited to announce a new maker scholarship program: <insert name of your program>. This

program will award a one-year ABC Makerspace membership to <insert number of students> students. These

students will have access to our extensive collection of tools, equipment and supplies. <indicate any rules for

minors, parental supervision, etc.)

In order to be eligible for this program, students will need to meet the following requirements:

- <Requirement 1 – Age, grades, etc.>

- <Requirement 2 - Public, private, charter schools, etc.>

- <Requirement 3 – Grades, financial need, etc.>

We will begin accepting applications on <opening date>. All applications must be received by <deadline date> to

be eligible. Applications may be submitted <insert via email, web, give URL if applicable, etc.>. We expect to

evaluate applications and notify winning applicants by <insert date>.

We want to thank our sponsors for their generous financial and other commitments to this program. <names of

sponsors, logos, whatever>

Sincerely,

<your name>

<your title>

<your contact info>

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1 See http://www.whitehouse.gov/maker-faire 2 See http://makered.org/ 3 See http://makezine.com/magazine/make-40/most-interesting-makerspaces-in-america/ 4 See https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/sparkmacon-maker-space 5 See https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/120288702/decatur-makers-a-makerspace-for-tech-art-tools-com 6 See http://www.13wmaz.com/story/news/local/macon/2014/06/27/tech-fest-macon/11574415/ 7 See http://www.berry.edu/academics/majors/creativetechnologies/ 8 See http://www.atlantaga.gov/index.aspx?page=777 9 See http://www.fastweb.com/content/scholarship-provider-guidelines 10 See http://www.scholarshipproviders.org/Content/ContentDisplay.aspx?ContentID=458 11 See http://www.cewd.org/toolkits/Scholarship/Scholarship%20Laws.pdf