Students
All graduating seniors and former graduates of Staples High School, in Westport, CT, are eligible to apply for a Staples Tuition Grants grant each year the student is attending an undergraduate, community college, vocational or trade school. Grants are awarded to students based on demonstrated financial need and are grants – not loans – and are therefore paid directly to the school the student attends, applied to the student’s net tuition, room and board cost. Awards are for one school year only, and students need to reapply each year they wish to be considered, but can apply any year they are in an undergraduate (or equivalent) program. Every year we consider each applicants current financial situation; whether or not the recipient has received an award in the past is not part of the criteria, so we encourage any eligible student with need to apply.
STG AWARDS CEREMONY
Every spring we hold an Awards Ceremony to honor that year’s grant recipients. We welcome our donors to attend, especially those who funded or administer STG named awards. Recognizing our students and connecting them with the sponsors of their awards is one of the great joys of our year.
The 2022 ceremony was held at the Staples High School auditorium on May 31, 2022. All 2022 applicants who received an award for the 2022-23 academic year were invited to attend, along with award donors and members of the Staples and Westport community.
The 2021 ceremony was held at Staples High School on June 2nd. We were thrilled to hold this event in person after doing virtually everything else for the previous 15 months virtually! The 2021 Awards Night program describes the events and the awards handed out, and provides a summary of our 2020-21 year. Here is a link to the photos from the evening (photos courtesy of Pamela Einarsen Photography – thanks Pam!). Congrats to the 129 students who received an award for the 2021-22 academic year.
The 2020 ceremony was unable to be held in person due to the pandemic, so we created this short video in June 2020 to congratulate our recipients, thank our many supporters, and provide messages of support and thanks from donors, current students, former recipients, as well as school and community leaders. Thank you to Margot Bruce for donating her time and talents to create this video, and congrats to all 109 student award recipients for the 2020-21 school year.
KEY STG DEADLINES TO WATCH
- 2023-24 Student Application: December 12, 2022
- Application Deadline: April 9, 2023
- Staples HS Seniors Applicant Interviews (for those eligible for an award): May 3rd & 4th, 2023
- STG Award Notifications: mid-May 2023
- STG Award Ceremony: May 30, 2023
KEY STUDENT INFORMATION
- STG awards are completely needs-based. We give away nearly everything we receive in contributions – approximately 96% of all donations historically fund grant awards, based on an all-volunteer board and low expense-ratio.
- STG application process is aligned to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, which is heavily weighted on family income and economic eligibility to ensure that grants go to Staples graduates with the greatest financial need.
- Grants are based on a student’s net cost of tuition, room and board after factoring in all their school’s gift aid (merit- as well as needs-based aid), and other expected grants and scholarships from third party sources. Student loans are NOT factored into net need, meaning we do not penalize students or their families for assuming debt to afford school.
- All new applicants are interviewed to ideally match the wishes of donors with established named awards to the interests, ambitions and accomplishments of grant recipients.
- Unlike many aid programs, STG is not for freshman year only. STG recipients are invited to re-apply for further grants as long as they are enrolled in an accredited undergraduate institution.