Northwest Minnesota Foundation opens scholarship applications Feb. 1

BEMIDJI — The Northwest Minnesota Foundation will begin accepting applications to its scholarship funds starting Feb. 1. Scholarships housed at NMF in 2022 issued 240 awards, totaling $288,000.

Scholarship awards can range from $500 to $4,000. Scholarship funds have a variety of focuses, such as support for students from specific school districts, those involved in certain extracurriculars or those intending to pursue specific majors, a release said.

NMF encourages all high school seniors considering post-secondary education to take the time to research scholarship opportunities using its scholarship portal, which makes it easy for students to identify the specific scholarships they are eligible for through an eligibility quiz.

Students input their information (high school district, high school extracurriculars, intended field of study, etc.) and then see a filtered result list.

Applications are completed through the NMF website at www.nwmf.org by clicking on “scholarships” at the top of the homepage. Students will be required to create an online account and take the eligibility quiz to begin the application process.

The deadline to apply for most of the scholarships is April 15.

“NMF believes that the community members who will have the most impact in our communities are young learners who are prepared for success,” said Kelly Martinka, who leads scholarship funds on the NMF philanthropy team. “We believe that students must take advantage of all educational opportunities presented to them.”

NMF hosts more than 114 scholarship opportunities for students throughout northwest Minnesota. Most of the scholarships are for high school seniors living within the NMF's 12-county region, however, there also are opportunities for nontraditional students or college-enrolled students.

“Every year, we hear from numerous students who nearly didn’t apply because they didn’t think they’d be awarded,” Martinka said. “We encourage all students to take the time to apply.”

To learn about how to establish a scholarship fund at Northwest Minnesota Foundation or to support one of the scholarship funds at NMF, visit www.nwmf.org.