USA Funds Announces $50,000 Challenge Grant to Support Latino Students in Indiana

Nearly 150 people gathered in Indianapolis Jan. 30 for a USA Funds^®-sponsored event to raise awareness of theneed for scholarship funds for Latino students in Indiana. At the event, Carl Dalstrom, USA Funds president and CEO, announced that USA Funds has issued a $50,000 challenge grant. The grant will match dollar for dollar — up to a total of $50,000 — contributions to a new Latino scholarship fund.

The new fund will support multiple organizations that offer scholarships to Latino students in Indiana. These organizations aim to expand scholarship support for Latino students in Indiana.

The Central Indiana Community Foundation serves as the fiscal agent for the Latino scholarship fund.

“Because minority students are expected to account for 80 percent of the growth in the college-going population during the decade, supporting scholarships for minority students will have the greatest impact on the nation’s future educational attainment,” said Dalstrom. “The need is even more acute since more than half of that growth will be among Hispanics.”

Leaders from the Indiana community, government and education sectors at the event met several Latino students who have received scholarships through the Mexican Scholarship Fund.

Among those recipients was Santander Zite, a student studying nursing at Indiana University. He spoke of the value of education for Latino students and the necessity of scholarships for students like himself, and encouraged those in attendance to support the new Latino Scholarship Fund. Zite is pursuing a career as a nurse practitioner.