Priorities & Needs: Need-Based Scholarships
Financial circumstances should not be a barrier to a Georgia Tech degree. Need-based scholarships provide critical funds for qualified, talented students who otherwise would be unable to finance their college education. Investment in need-based programs is especially critical for in-state students who lose HOPE scholarship eligibility (HOPE is Georgia's in-state scholarship program funded by the Georgia Lottery, the proceeds from which are used to provide scholarships and loans to Georgia residents who maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0) and for out-of-state students who are not eligible for HOPE scholarship assistance.
G. Wayne Clough Georgia Tech Promise
The first participants in the G. Wayne Clough Georgia Tech Promise scholarship program entered Tech in the fall of 2007. Their journey was made possible by the tireless advocacy of Dr. G. Wayne Clough, the tenth president of the Georgia Institute of Technology, for whom the program was named in 2008 as he stepped down after a fourteen-year tenure to become Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. The G. Wayne Clough Georgia Tech Promise, a debt-free scholarship program, is designed to ensure that a degree from Georgia Tech is within reach for qualified Georgia students from low-income families. The program fills a gap in the financial aid support system, picking up where Georgia's HOPE scholarship and other financial aid options leave off.
Each year, hundreds of well-qualified students who are likely to find academic success at Georgia Tech do not enroll here because of financial barriers. These are students who are highly motivated, have demonstrated academic aptitude, and are likely to succeed and, in turn, give back to the Institute and to our society. Private philanthropy is critical to fund this important program and make a true difference in the lives of promising students in need.
Gifts and commitments to support need-based scholarships and G. Wayne Clough Tech Promise may be made in the form of permanent endowment or current operating dollars. For more information on giving to need-based scholarship programs such as Tech Promise, contact Barrett H. Carson, Vice President for Development.
