Deadline is near to apply for Barnes Scholarships

By Times Staff Writer
Published October 13, 2007

Monday is the deadline to apply for the 2008 Barnes Scholarship, sponsored by the St. Petersburg Times Fund.

The scholarship is worth up to $60,000 over four years and is open to high school seniors in public and private schools in Pinellas, Hillsborough, Pasco, Hernando and Citrus counties. Applicants must be citizens or permanent residents of the United States.

Applications are available through high school guidance counselors, at offices of the St. Petersburg Times and by mail. The application also may be downloaded from the fund's scholarship Web site at www.tampabay.com/scholarships.

Applications must be postmarked by Oct. 15 and mailed to R&R Education Consultants, P.O. Box 250861, New York, N.Y. 10025. The fax number is 212 663-7543.

In February, four high school seniors will be selected to receive up to $15,000 per year for four years at accredited colleges of their choice. Selection is based on academic achievement, financial need, community service and evidence of having overcome significant obstacles in life. Last year, 265 students applied for the Barnes Scholarships.

Since 2000, when the first scholarships were awarded, 16 Barnes scholars have graduated from college. Sixteen are still enrolled at such universities as Duke, Cornell, the University of California-Berkeley, Northwestern, Columbia, the University of Chicago, Ohio State, Georgetown, the University of Florida, the University of Tampa and the University of Rochester.

The scholarships were established by the fund in 1999 and renamed in 2004 in honor of Andrew Barnes, retired chairman and chief executive of the St. Petersburg Times. The St. Petersburg Times Fund is the nonprofit philanthropic arm of Times Publishing Co.

For more information, contact Nancy Waclawek, director of the fund, at (727) 893-8780 or waclawek@sptimes.com.

[Last modified October 13, 2007, 00:14:48]