After last month’s tragic event at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, students have yet to return to a classroom. As reported by CBSNews, the students at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown will be attending a new school redesigned specially for them.

The new school is in the town of Monroe. Signs saying “Welcome Sandy Hook Elementary School” and “Welcome. You are in our prayers” hung along the road greeting students, parents, and teachers as they made their way back to class today. Security will be enforced at the new school to ensure students, parents, and teachers feel safe.

A few weeks of renovating from volunteers and the former middle school known as Chalk Hill School in Monroe, Conn. is ready for these young students to step foot inside. Volunteers even made the school size friendly by raising bathroom floors for smaller children to reach the toilets. Students’ supplies from Sandy Hook Elementary and photos will be placed in the new school to make students feel comfortable. Experts and counselors say it is vital that students feel comfortable and back to a regular schedule. Read the rest of this entry »

In Amherst, Massachusetts, Hampshire College has begun a scholarship fund earmarked for a select group of college hopefuls: illegal immigrants. The scholarship plans to give $25,000 to one student each year who lives in the U.S. but does not hold U.S. citizenship so that he or she can earn a degree. The first recipient received the scholarship for 2012-2013 school year.

The fund has $300,000 so far that was donated by alumni, students, parents, and other donors at Hampshire College. Currently, undocumented immigrants in Massachusetts must pay out-of-state tuition to attend college, with Hampshire charging $43,000 in yearly tuition. The federal government does not give any financial aid to illegal immigrants.

A handful of other colleges and universities also offer scholarships specifically for illegal immigrants, but this is the first in Massachusetts. States vary on their handling of the issue of whether to let illegal immigrants attend college and if they should receive discount rates. Most states treat them as international students and charge out-of-state tuition rates, with thirteen offering in-state tuition. Three states allow illegal immigrants to receive state financial aid, but three others – Georgia, Colorado, and South Carolina – ban them from attending state colleges and universities. Read the rest of this entry »

If you are one of the many college students who needs help paying for college, there’s an important date in your near future: March 1, 2012. Why is this date important? Well, if you want to receive government funds to help pay for you education, you need to have filled out and submitted the FAFSA by this date in order to qualify for the 2012-2013 school year.

What is the FAFSA? FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid and is a federal scholarship for students. Many students qualify for this need-based aid, but you must reapply for it each year in order to receive the money.

In the past, the FAFSA had a reputation for being overtly difficult to complete. Recently, the FAFSA received a makeover, which makes it easier to understand and complete; however, some people still have trouble with it the first time they fill it out.

Read the rest of this entry »

Former presidential candidate Ralph Nader plans to “de-professionalize” college athletics by getting rid of sports scholarships. Nader released his plan to cut them on Thursday. Unsurprisingly, he displays his contention for the scholarships at a time when March Madness creates a Super-Bowl-like hype for fans across the country.

“As we near the exciting conclusion of ‘March Madness’ — which would more accurately be described as the 2011 NCAA Professional Basketball Championships — it’s time we step back and finally address the myth of amateurism surrounding big-time college football and basketball in this country,” Nader said.

Nader, along with his League of Fans, hope to replace the scholarships with need-based financial aid, and he said that by eliminating them, student athletes would be less likely to have a “win-at-all-costs” attitude in high school.

Read the rest of this entry »

Automotive giant Buick is awarding 1,100 scholarships to entering college freshman this year with the Buick Achievers Scholarship Program. The scholarships will be presented to students planning to major in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering or Math), design, marketing or finance. Expressing an interest in the automotive industry, using the mentioned areas of study, is an important criterion for scholarship applicants.

The available scholarships will be presented in two denominations. One thousand students will be awarded an annual amount, for four years, of $2,000. Another one hundred students will receive an annual amount, for four years, of up to $25,000. One additional year of scholarship is available to those students entered in a five year engineering program. While the scholarships will be renewable, the eligibility is contingent on academic performance and maintaining study in approved majors.

Read the rest of this entry »

Internet domain registrar and web-hosting giant GoDaddy is offering ten scholarships worth $10,000 each. To apply for the scholarship, students must submit an essay in 500 words or less about how they have used the Internet or Internet technologies to further their educations. The essays will be judged on creativity and quality.

GoDaddy scholars must also have a current GPA of 3.0 or higher, an ACT score or 18 and higher or an SAT score of 860 and higher, and be a legal resident of the United States. Applicants are also asked to provide two non-family letters of reference.

Read the rest of this entry »

Researching colleges can seem like an overwhelming task, and it may be difficult to know where to begin. Sites like ours can be a great place to start, but you may wish to speak with an expert about your specific needs. That’s why The Princeton Review has created new courses to help you navigate the college selection process. They are also offering financial aid courses, that can save you hundreds in the long run.

These courses are offered in a convenient LiveOnline seminar format. Parents and prospective college students can ask The Princeton Review’s experts all their hardest questions about the admissions process or applying for financial aid. They can help you with everything from filing the FAFSA to finding unique resources of financial aid. Students will also have access to recordings of their sessions for 120 days on their computers.

The classes range from $69.00 to $199.00, but EduInReview is offering our readers a special 10 percent discount on College Admissions & Financial Aid Courses, in addition to all test-prep classes.

Click here to save on Princeton Review College Admissions & Financial Aid Courses.

This past Sunday, an announcement was made that will forever change the lives of 32 American students. These 32 students will be heading to the University of Oxford in England in October of 2011 as the latest group of Rhodes Scholars.

This year there are 17 women and 15 men that gained the prestigious designation of Rhodes Scholars. There were a total of 837 applicants this year from 309 schools. The 32 scholars from the United States heading to Oxford next October will join several others from 14 jurisdictions around the world.

For many, this is the most famous academic award available to American college students. This year’s scholars include more women than men for only the third time since women were allowed to apply in 1976. Also, for the first time in history, two scholars come from the state of South Dakota. Ursinus College and the University of California, Irvine are the two new colleges that were added to the list of those represented by winners this year.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you love to tweet and you need money for college, then look no further. KFC will give $20,000 in scholarship money to a high-school student with the best tweet.

With a character limit of 140, applicants must write a short statement to explain why they are worthy of such a scholarship.

“It’s judged based on quality, creativity, ability to tell a story on why they should receive the award, and the entrepreneurial drive and desire to pursue a college education,” Rick Maynard said, a KFC spokesman.

The contest started on Nov. 17 and will end on Nov. 26. The winner will be revealed on Dec. 1. To apply, tweets must include the hashtag #KFCScholar.

Read the rest of this entry »

Athletes give us something to get excited about while we are in college. Whether they are shooting baskets, scoring touchdowns, or crossing the finish line first, college athletes are an integral group of students at every school. It makes sense that these athletes – who are almost seen as heroes at some schools – should receive some sort of compensation for their efforts, which is why most people think athletes receive full scholarships to the school they attend. However, a new report shows this isn’t true.

Researchers at Ithaca College recently reported that the “average ‘full scholarship’ Division I athlete winds up having to pay $2,951 annually on school-related expenses.” These expenses include everything from campus parking permits to school supplies.

“It’s really deceptive to use the words ‘full scholarship,’” said Ramogi Huma, head of the National College Players Association. “There’s never an explanation for recruited athletes that the price for attending school falls short of the scholarship amount.” Read the rest of this entry »