A HAND UP FOR PARENTS

Twenty-two receive area scholarships

Twenty-two single parents received scholarships to area colleges during a ceremony Monday at Texarkana College.

The $700 scholarships were presented by Sandra Warren, program manager for the Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund. They were provided by Entergy; the Texarkana, Texas, Housing Authority; the Arkansas Department of Higher Education; and the Ozan-Inghram Iron Mountain Neighborhood Development Corp.

Created in 1990, ASPSF has given more than 45,000 scholarships worth more than $7 million. According to the organization’s website, more than $1.5 million is given annually to students statewide.

During the presentation, Tenequa Martin, educational opportunity center specialist for TC, spoke on financial literacy and how students can handle their money properly. She addressed the usage of bank and savings accounts and encouraged students to use the text alert system for their debit cards to keep track of their spending.

“It can be challenging if you’re not keeping up with it unless you’re signed up to text alerts,” she said, adding that she keeps her cards locked by her bank until she’s ready to use them.

Martin then encouraged attendees to budget 10 percent of takehome pay to put into savings plans. She said everyone should have both a short-term and long-term savings plan and use the short term for emergencies and the long term for retirement.

“There are expensive things that happen. How do you pay for them when they happen?” she asked. “You can use your savings account or go into debt. If you’ve got that savings, you’re good to go.”

Martin said it is recommended for everyone to have three to six months of savings in case of a job loss or other catastrophe.

She went on to discuss loans, credit cards, how to handle debt and life insurance.

“We want to give you something you can take with you to apply to your life to help make your financial life better,” she said.

For more information on the Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund, go to www.aspsf.org.

Staff photo by Hunt Mercier ■ Brandy Davis from Little River County, Ark., accepts the Single Parent Scholarship award Monday from Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund Region 6 Program Manager Sandra Warren at Texarkana College. The purpose of the scholarship is to support single parents and help them through a traditional or technical school program. Twenty-two people from Little River, Miller and Bowie counties received the award.