UA seeking to fund in-state scholarship

FAYETTEVILLE — Donations are being sought to establish a new scholarship for University of Arkansas in-state students called Advance Arkansas.

UA announced Monday it’s seeking donors to establish new scholarship endowments and has set aside $2.5 million to match money paid out. The initiative is part of UA’s $1 billion fundraising effort known as Campaign Arkansas.

“It’s going to focus on Arkansas students, not out-ofstate students, so the whole idea is to provide students that have need and great ability with more scholarship dollars so that they can come here to the University of Arkansas,” Chancellor Joe Steinmetz said.

A university spokesman, Steve Voorhies, said the goal is to establish 50 scholarships for the 2018-19 school year, but the number of awards will depend on fundraising.

A $50,000 gift from Steinmetz and his wife, Sandy, establishes the first new scholarship endowment, according to UA. On top of earlier gifts, that raises the total to $100,000 the couple has donated to establish the Chancellor’s Advance Arkansas Endowed Scholarship.

Endowed gifts are generally invested, with the proceeds from those investments going for a specified purpose. Each year, typically a small percentage of an endowed fund is paid out.

As part of the Advance Arkansas initiative, UA will match the payout amounts, so that an endowment generating $2,000 in scholarship money would be matched with $2,000 from the university.

The student scholarships will range from $4,000 up to the full cost of tuition, according to UA. Yearly tuition at UA, not including fees or housing, cost $7,204 in 2016-17 for a typical course load.

“It’s not a strictly merit-based scholarship,” said Steinmetz, adding a student’s financial need will be taken into consideration when awarding the scholarships.

The scholarships will be available for new, transfer and returning students.

UA also announced students who are the first in their families to pursue bachelor’s degrees will receive preference for the scholarships.

Will Doyle, an associate professor at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee who studies college affordability, said the Advance Arkansas awards differ from other scholarships at similar schools because of the preference given to first-generation students.

People who have been away from school for a time, “report [that] financial barriers are a reason they might not come back,” Doyle said. However, he said, “we don’t know nearly enough” about that dynamic.

Steinmetz said the $2.5 million in matching money will come in part from cutting administrative costs by 1 percent each year for the next three years. The cuts are part of an effort to support campuswide initiatives, including advancing student success.

He said UA has been studying why students leave school. In November, UA reported a 64.5 percent six-year graduation rate.

“The picture is really emerging that it’s not academic performance that’s hindering our retention, but rather it’s the economic things that are causing our students to leave or be delayed in their graduation,” Steinmetz said.