Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company Foundation Grants $155,000 to American Indian College Fund for Native Scholarships

DENVER, Aug. 1, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company Foundation (SFNTC) has entered its fourth year of support for Native higher education with the American Indian College Fund by awarding $155,000 for Native student scholarships.

Ten Native Teacher Preparation Scholarships will be awarded under the program for $4,000 each. To qualify, students must be American Indians attending a tribal college and studying to be a teacher or education paraprofessional.

Ten Skills Development Scholarships will also be awarded for $4,000 each. To qualify, students must be American Indian and enrolled in a building trade curriculum or vocational/career program, such as heavy equipment operation, welding, hazardous waste technician, highway construction, electrician, or plumbing coursework at a tribal college.

These programs will continue to provide scholarships to American Indian students enrolled full-time in an associate's degree program at one of the following tribal colleges and universities: Dine College, Navajo Technical College, Oglala Lakota College, Sinte Gleska University, and Sisseton Wahpeton College. Recipients must also demonstrate financial need and be a single parent and/or in their first year of an associate's degree program.

From the grant, the Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company Foundation will also continue to support 15 Achieving the Dream Scholarships in 2011-12 for American Indian students who are single parents and/or in the first year of an associate's degree program for $4,000 each. Students must be American Indian and enrolled in Dine College, Navajo Technical College, Sisseton Wahpeton College, Sinte Gleska University, or Oglala Lakota College to qualify. The foundation has also pledged its continued support to continue the program for three years.

"We have expanded our support of the AICF this year to help American Indian students pursue teacher-preparation and skills-development programs that will have a direct positive impact on the students' communities," said SFNTC Foundation Chairman Nicholas A. Bumbacco.  "At the same time, we have also increased the level of financial support for students who receive Achieving the Dream Scholarships. We feel fortunate that we can work with an organization of the caliber of the AICF to help American Indian students improve themselves and the future of their families and communities."

"The generous and long-time support from the Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company Foundation has helped many people in the American Indian community obtain a higher education," said Richard B. Williams, President and CEO of the American Indian College Fund. "This substantial gift and pledged support for the future will continue Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company's legacy as a supporter of Native education and a company that is working to create hope and a better life for American Indian people."

About the Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Co. Foundation

The Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company Foundation grants financial assistance to organizations that support the preservation, promotion, and advancement of American Indian self-sufficiency and culture in the United States, including programs for the development of American Indian entrepreneurism; facilitating American Indian education (particularly college, graduate, and post-graduate education); and the preservation and enhancement of American Indian languages.

About the American Indian College Fund

With its credo "Educating the Mind and Spirit," the American Indian College Fund is the nation's largest private provider of scholarships for American Indian students, providing an average of 6,000 scholarships annually for students seeking to better their lives and communities through education and support to the nation's 33 accredited tribal colleges and universities. For more information about the American Indian College Fund, please visit www.collegefund.org.

SOURCE American Indian College Fund