The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation Awards $6,000,000 in Scholarships to 300 Graduating Seniors

AUSTIN, Texas, April 13 /PRNewswire/ -- As a part of a unique scholarship program designed to identify and support college educations for low-income or financially underserved students, the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation's Dell Scholars Program today awarded 300 students with $6,000,000 in college scholarship funds. The program's retention and graduate rates far exceed the national average and since its inception in 2004, the Dell Scholars Program has awarded 1,550 scholarships and paid out $31 million in scholarship funds.

With college completion rates for lower income students remaining static over the last 38 years and 60 percent of a low-income family's income required for four-year public education tuition, the opportunity for a college education continues to be challenging for low-income or financially underserved students. The Dell Scholars Program is one of the only established scholarship programs in the country that provides an array of financial support and services for the highest risk demographic at a national scale.

"We award low-income or financially underserved students who perform better than their GPAs or test scores may indicate, and who have overcome some significant obstacles to pursue their education," said Oscar Sweeten-Lopez, of the Dell Scholars Program at the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation. "Our program and support constantly evolves based on our experiences with students and schools but we continue to provide these students with unprecedented support for everything they need to obtain a college degree and graduate with far less debt than the average college student."

Most of the Dell Scholars are first-generation college students and are chosen because they participate in an approved college readiness program and maintain at least a 2.4 grade point average on a 4.0 scale while dealing with personal responsibilities at home or in their communities. Dell Scholars will receive $20,000 each to continue their higher education for the next six years. More than just a check, the Dell Scholars Program also provides its students with technology, resources and mentoring to ensure they have the support they need to obtain a college degree.  The additional resources have contributed to the program's retention rate of almost 95 percent, well above the national average of 23 percent for students with the same socioeconomic profile.

"The greatest part about being a Dell Scholar is the strong, strong support system," said Lameck Lukanga, a Dell Scholar who just completed his Master's degree. "I saw this when my mom had a severe stroke while I was in college. The team from the Dell Scholars Program was there for me, and I knew they cared about me as an individual. I may not have completed college if it had not been for the Dell Scholars Program."

In addition to GPA and college readiness program participation, Dell Scholars requirements also include graduation from an accredited high school, demonstrated financial need and intent to enter a bachelor's degree program at an accredited higher education institution in the fall. The Dell Scholars Program uses its custom-built software with a sophisticated algorithm that helps predict a student's propensity to graduate from college based on several factors, despite the personal challenges these determined, low-income students must address in their lives.  

The Dell Scholars Program was named the 2008 "Scholarship Provider of the Year" by the National Scholarship Providers Association because of its unique scholar profile and retention success.

For a complete listing of the class of 2010 Dell Scholars, go to www.dellscholars.org.

About the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation

The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation (www.msdf.org) is dedicated to improving the lives of children living in urban poverty around the world. With offices in Austin, TX and New Delhi, India, and Cape Town, South Africa, the Dell family foundation funds programs that foster high-quality public education and childhood health, and improve the economic stability of families living in poverty. The foundation has committed more than $650 million to global children's issues and community initiatives to date.

SOURCE Michael & Susan Dell Foundation