Frequently Asked Questions

How do I look for scholarships from private donors?

Scroll through the list below – these are scholarship opportunities that private organizations have asked SPC to advertise. This page is updated when we receive new notifications.

If I apply for a scholarship, will my personal information be shared?

The links below are to third-party websites that SPC does not control or maintain. SPC is not responsible for the privacy policies employed by any third-party website. We encourage you to read the privacy statements of all third-party websites before submitting any personal information.

How do I avoid scholarship scams?

Review the Federal Trade Commission's recommendations on how to avoid scholarship and financial aid scams.

I received a scholarship from a private donor or I am a private donor. How do I get the funds to SPC?

Congratulations students and thank you donors! Make checks payable to St. Petersburg College. Scholarship checks may be mailed to: St. Petersburg College, Attn: Scholarships, P.O. Box 13489, St. Petersburg, FL 33733. Checks may also be given to your campus Business Office. Please attach the student recipient's name and SPC ID number, as well as a contact name and phone number for the donor.

What will my scholarship cover?

Each individual private donor determines what charges their scholarship will cover. Options are tuition; tuition and fees; tuition, fees and books; and tuition and fees with any remainder to the student.

If there are unused funds, SPC will place funds on your student account until they are completely spent or they are not used for three terms. If they are unused at the end of the third term, they will automatically be returned to the donor. The donor or the student may request to have any unused funds returned to the donor at any time.

Private Donor Scholarships

  • T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood Scholarship Program

    Description:

    The T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood Scholarship Program Provides scholarships to early learning program teachers and directors, family child care home educators, and child care facility owners working
    toward earning a Florida Staff Credential, a Director Credential, a National CDA Assessment, credential renewals, and Associate, Bachelor’s, or Master’s degrees in early childhood education. The scholarship provides the majority of tuition and books. 

    Criteria:

    Teachers, directors, or family child care educators may be eligible if they:

    • Are Florida residents
    • Have a high school diploma (accredited) or GED
    • Are employed by a licensed, license-exempt, or registered early learning program, including child care facilities, family child care homes, and after school programs
    • Work or volunteer with a birth through pre-K population for a minimum of 20 hours a week (or 520 hours per year in an afterschool program)
    • Have the sponsorship of the early learning program which employs them

    Deadline:

    no deadline

  • Florida Fund for Minority Teachers

    Description:

    The Florida Fund for Minority Teachers offers a $4000 scholarship to full-time students. Scholars are selected on the basis of qualities that would indicate their potential to become good teachers. These qualities include strong writing ability, communication skills, overall academic performance and evidence of commitment to the youth of America, preferably demonstrated through volunteer activities. Special consideration is given to community college graduates. Submit an application and supporting documents to Sherri Kent-Roberts, SPC Academic Program Coordinator, 727-341-4659.

    Criteria:

    Applicants must be a resident of the State of Florida; be a member of one of the following racial groups: African, American/Black, Hispanic/Latino, Asian American/Pacific Islander, or American Indian/Alaskan Native; be newly admitted into a teacher education program at any of FFMT’s participating universities/colleges; be a junior and have not earned a baccalaureate degree in Education; have earned 60 credit hours or an AA degree; and have not exceeded 18 hours of upper division education courses at the time of application. Scholarship recipients must attend a mandatory FFMT symposium each year they receive the award or they will not receive further funding. Upon graduation Scholarship recipients must agree to work in a public Florida schools for the number of academic years they receive the award or the scholarship becomes a loan that the student must pay back to the Fund.

    Deadline:

    July. 1 for fall enrollment and Dec. 1 for spring enrollment.

  • The Southern Scholarship Foundation

    Description:

    The Southern Scholarship Foundation is a non-profit organization which awards qualifying students with housing scholarships on the following campuses: FSU, UF, FAMU, FGCU, Tallahassee Comm College and Santa Fe College.

    Criteria:

    Interested applicants must have at least a 3.0 GPA and a demonstrated financial need. Scholarship recipients live cooperatively in a house with students representing a variety of backgrounds and cultures. They do not pay rent, but are responsible for their fair share of basic household expenses such as food and utilities. The entire cost to the student averages $950 per semester. Only complete application packets will be reviewed for acceptance.

    Deadline:

    There is not an application deadline, however, submission by March 1 is encouraged as spots do fill quickly.

  • Transfer Scholarship! SPC & FAMU IGNITE Program

    Description:

    The FAMU IGNITE Program provides guaranteed general admission to transfer students who obtain their A.A. degree from a Florida Community or State College. 

    Criteria:

    If you earn a 3.0 or higher GPA at SPC, you'll be eligible for scholarship money at FAMU. To join, you must have no more than 30 college credits earned at the time of submission.

    Deadline:

    No deadline

  • Transfer Scholarship! Florida Tech Phi Theta Kappa Scholarship

    Description:

    Your complete application for admission to Florida Tech full-time undergraduate study at the university's Melbourne campus is your application for most of the merit-based opportunities that follow. There is no separate application to be considered for merit-based aid, but you may need to include certain documentation with your application. Please make sure to provide all the necessary materials. Select the Transfer Scholarships accordion. An additional $2,500 per year if the student applies and is admitted to Florida Tech and was a member of Phi Theta Kappa. Proof of Phi Theta Kappa membership must be submitted at time of application.

    Criteria:

    Scholarships are awarded at the time of admission. A student must be admitted and enroll as a full-time, degree-seeking undergraduate student in Melbourne in order to claim an awarded scholarship. Scholarships are available to domestic (U.S.) freshman unless otherwise indicated.

    Deadline:

    No deadline

  • Fry Scholarship

    Description:

    The Fry Scholarship was created to honor Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry, 28, of Lorena, TX. Sergeant Fry had one week left in his tour in Iraq in 2006, when he volunteered to continue working for seven more hours disarming explosive devices, despite having already sustained an injury to his hand. He made the ultimate sacrifice on March 8, 2006, in Anbar province, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated. He left behind a widow and three children.

    Criteria:

    Section 701 of the Choice Act expands the Fry Scholarship to include the surviving spouses of Service members who died in the line of duty after September 10, 2001. Prior to this law, only children of those who died in the line of duty were eligible for this benefit. The law states that eligible spouses are entitle to receive:

    • 36 months of full benefits, equal to 100% level of the Post-9/11 GI Bill, this includes tuition and fee payment, a monthly housing allowance, and a stipend for books and supplies
    • Training must start on or after January 1, 2015, training prior to January 1, 2015 is not eligible to receive benefits under Section 701
    • A spouse has 15 years from the date of the Service Member's death to utilize benefits. If a spouse remarries, benefits end the date of the remarriage.

    Deadline:

    Begins Nov. 3, 2014

  • AddictionResource.Net

    Description:

    Addiction Resource is proud to announce our $1,000 college scholarship essay contest.
    Higher education can be a valuable part of seeking a long-term career or bettering a person’s lifestyle. We at AddictionResource.net are passionate about supporting higher education, both to help college students reach their goals and to give back to our community at large.

    Scholarship Details:
    https://www.addictionresource.net/scholarships/

    • Essay submission deadline: April 12, 2024
    • Scholarship award announcement: April 19, 2024

    • Scholarship will be awarded for the Summer 2024 semester: Scholarship will be awarded directly to the university through the financial aid department (or however the university chooses) to be distributed to the winning student.


    This is an ongoing scholarship opportunity. Our next scholarship essay contest will start in Summer 2024 to be awarded for the Fall 2024 semester.

    Criteria:

    To participate in the scholarship contest, individuals must meet certain eligibility criteria, including:

    Be a student pursuing a college or university degree (associate, bachelor’s, master’s, doctorate) or a trade certification in a technical college
    Be enrolled full-time at a post-secondary institution
    Be 18 years or older at the time of entry

    Deadline:

    Ongoing

  • LA Tutors $500 Innovation in Education scholarship

    Description:

    LA Tutors are passionate about sparking the creative genius in students and would love to commend those outstanding students who have a made a difference in the lives of others in some innovative or technological fashion. In order to achieve this, we have established a scholarship for students who meet certain criteria.

    https://www.latutors123.com/scholarships/innovation-in-education/

    Criteria:

    Must currently be enrolled as a high school, college/university, or graduate student.
    Must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 (or the equivalent).
    Must be a citizen of, permanent resident of, or hold an active F1 I-20 or active J1 DS -2019 in the United States or Canada on the date of scholarship selection (25th of each month).
    Must have designed an innovative project that makes a difference in the lives of others (This could be a website, series of blogs, an app, fundraising event, etc.)

    Must submit an essay describing the goal of the particular project and provide supporting documentation. There is no minimum or maximum word/page count.

    Deadline:

    All submissions must be uploaded no later than 11:59 pm PST on the 20th of each month. The submission window closes starting the 21st and will reopen on the 1st at 8:00 a.m. Students are welcome to reapply each month. Previous winners are not eligible to reapply.

  • Completing The Dream Scholarship

    Description:

    The Sallie Mae Fund, in partnership with Thurgood Marshall College Fund, is again providing 200 Completing the Dream Scholarships  Scholarships to help students from underserved communities complete their higher education. Applications will be accepted until all $500,000 in scholarship funds are awarded or on December 6, 2024.

    Criteria:

    Eligible students must be on track to complete their program during the academic year 2024-2025 at a two-or four-year college, career training, and other post-secondary education programs and maintain good academic standing.

    Apply today at Completing the Dream Scholarship Program | The Sallie Mae Fund

    Deadline:

    December 6, 2024

  • CNC Machines 2024 7th Annual Student Scholarship.

    Description:

    The CNCMachines.com scholarship https://cncmachines.com/scholarship/apply   is a yearly scholarship awarded to exceptional students working towards a degree or certification in manufacturing, engineering, or related fields. Applicable degrees include certifications, certificates, associates, bachelors or masters. The total award of this scholarship is $2,500. This Scholarship renews and accepts new applications every year.

    Criteria:

    This award is available for students pursuing a certification, certificate, associates, or bachelors in manufacturing or a related area of study.

    Essays must be uploaded in Word (.doc / .docx) or PDF format.
    Essays must be a minimum of 1,000 words and no more than 1,300 words.
    Any outside sources used or referenced in your esssay must be properly cited.
    Your work must be your own! Plagiarized essays will be automatically disqualified.

    Deadline:

    The deadline for all submissions is 5:00pm (EST) on Friday December 6th, 2024.

  • The Hoggatt Injury Law Children of Injured Workers Scholarship

    Description:

    At Hoggatt Injury Law, we are passionate about supporting workers and their families whose lives have been affected by work-related injuries. We know that workplace injuries can have far-reaching financial ramifications, including when it comes to a family’s ability to provide for their children’s educational expenses.

    We hope to help families address this challenge by offering a scholarship to the child of an employee who has been injured or killed in a work-related accident. The Hoggatt Injury Law Children of Injured Workers Scholarship provides $1,000 to assist with a student’s tuition and other educational expenses at their chosen college or university anywhere in the United States.

    Students and universities can reach our scholarship team at scholarship@hoggattlaw.com .

    https://www.hoggattlaw.com/children-of-injured-workers-scholarship#scholar-contact

    Criteria:

    You are eligible to apply for the Spring 2025 Hoggatt Injury Law Children of Injured Workers Scholarship if:

    Your parent has been affected by a work-related injury
    You are enrolled (or will be) in an undergraduate or graduate program at an accredited U.S. college or university through at least the Spring 2025 semester
    You are a U.S. citizen
    You are at least 18 years of age
    You have a current cumulative GPA of at least 2.5

    Deadline:

    12/9/2024

  • BigSun Athletic Scholarships 2025

    Description:

    The BigSun Organization is proud to be able to help young athletes succeed in their academic pursuits. In order to do our part we are offering an annual scholarship to a deserving student. All student athletes are eligible regardless of the sport they are engaged in or the capacity in which they participate. The student must be a high school senior or be attending a post secondary institute.

    https://www.bigsunathletics.com/

    Criteria:

    All student athletes are eligible regardless of the sport they are engaged in or the capacity in which they participate. The student must be a high school senior or be attending a post secondary institute.
    Please remember to include your name and the name of the school that you are attending.


    Please send us a short essay (500 - 1,000 words) answering the following questions:
    • How did your participation in sports during your high school years influence you?
    • Has your participation influenced your career goals?
    All essay submissions should be sent to:

    athleticawards@bigsunathletics.com

    Deadline:

    June 19, 2025