Named Term and Endowed Scholarships

The Goldwater scholarship was created by Congress in 1986 to help ensure this Nation had the continuing talent pool it needs in the natural sciences, engineering and mathematics to maintain its global competitiveness. Today, possibly more than ever before, we need this talent pool!

Since its inception, Goldwater scholarships have been awarded to over 9,000 college sophomores and juniors, enabling these students to maintain their focus on their academic studies and, by becoming involved in graduate-student-like research under the mentorship of research faculty, enhance their research abilities in the natural sciences, engineering, and mathematics well beyond those of most undergraduates. Over 2000 Campus Representatives help the Goldwater Foundation identify this Nation’s most promising and outstanding young talent. Over the years, the Goldwater scholarship has become the most sought-after, prestigious undergraduate award in the sciences, engineering, and mathematics, with Goldwater Scholars routinely going on to win highly competitive, nationally recognized awards like the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, Rhodes Scholarship, Hertz Fellowship, Churchill Scholarship, and National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship that support advanced degrees in these fields. Upwards of 70 percent of Goldwater Scholars have gone on to receive PhDs in their fields!

Every year the Goldwater Foundation identifies many more outstanding, highly creative undergraduates who should be recognized and supported than our financial resources enable us to support. For the first time in the history of the Goldwater Scholarship Program, you can join us in supporting these students. By creating a named term or endowed scholarship, you will be capitalizing on the success of the Goldwater program and on our nationwide network of Campus Representatives to help ensure that the amazing talent the Foundation discovers every year develops into this Nation’s next generation of leaders in the natural sciences, engineering, and mathematics.

Guidelines

Financial Requirements to Establish Named Term and Endowed Scholarships

Term Scholarship: For a one-time donation of $250,000, or a 5-year pledge of $50,000 annually, five (5) named scholarships will be awarded annually for a period of 5 years. Over the five-year term, a total of twenty-five (25) named scholarships will be awarded.
Endowed Scholarship: For a one-time donation of $1 M, five (5) named scholarships will be awarded annually, in perpetuity.

Donor Naming Rights

Named Term and Endowed Scholarships can be:
• named for the donor, named to memorialize an individual, or named to recognize an organization,
• used to establish awards across all disciplinary areas or targeted to a specific field or fields, and
• awarded nationally or targeted to a specific geographic region.

Selection of Named Term and Endowed Scholarship Recipients

Using the criteria put forward by the donor related to field or geographic location, the strongest and most appropriate candidates for named term or endowed scholarships will be identified by the team of reviewers brought together by the Foundation annually to select the Goldwater Scholarship recipients. The individuals put forward by the review team for named term or endowed scholarships will be reviewed by the Foundation President and approved by the Foundation’s Board of Trustees.

Donor Recognition

Donors will:
• receive annual updates from their awardees while their Scholars are undergraduates,
• have their named scholarship cited in publications or presentations while awardees are undergraduates, and
• be recognized on the Goldwater Foundation’s web site as a donor to a named term or endowed scholarship.

Goldwater Board Approval

All named term and endowed scholarships, including donor naming rights, are subject to the review and approval of the Goldwater Board of Trustees under policies established by the Board.

Contact Information

If you would like to discuss creating a named term or endowed scholarship, please contact Dr. John Mateja, President, Goldwater Scholarship Foundation, by telephone at 703-756-6012 or by email at: goldwaterpres@goldwaterscholarship.gov.