Four high school students from across the country traveled to Newark as finalists for a new scholarship from Sallie Mae. Each student ended up walking away with $25,000 as recipients of the company’s inaugural Bridging the Dream Scholarship.
Sallie Mae Chairman and CEO Raymond J. Quinlan made the announcement at a ceremony in front of the students’ families, friends, supporters, and more than 500 Sallie Mae employees, who played an integral role in making the dream of college a reality for these deserving students.
The Sallie Mae Bridging the Dream Scholarship recipients, Bryana Blanco of Pembroke Pines, Fla., Kendal Cooney, of Camden, Mich., Quinton Lopez of Canoga Park, Calif., and Kayla Pinzur of Brewster, N.Y., were selected after the company asked 20,000 high school counselors from around the U.S. to nominate students who exemplify excellence both inside and outside the classroom, have overcome obstacles, and have a desire and dedication to make college happen, a release stated.
Earlier this year, Sallie Mae employees around the country were introduced to the finalists’ personal stories and circumstances and — inspired by what they learned about each deserving student — organized a host of fundraising events to support the scholarship. In just three months, Sallie Mae employees raised $50,661, which was supplemented by the company to reach a total of $100,000 for the Bridging the Dream Scholarship.
“Our mission is to make the dream of higher education a reality, and — as you might conclude from the extraordinary involvement of our employees in making this scholarship a reality — all of us at Sallie Mae are deeply committed to helping students and their families reach their potential,” said Quinlan. “The Bridging the Dream Scholarship exemplifies, in name and intent, what Sallie Mae is all about, and we are proud to be a part of a community of school counselors, administrators, community organizations, and corporations that want to help families across America make college happen.”
The Sallie Mae Bridging, the Dream Scholarship, is part of the company’s continued commitment to helping students and families make college become a reality.
Over the last year, the company introduced new products to help families save for college, launched initiatives that encourage families to plan for college, conducted research and partnered to create materials to help families understand and manage credit, and continued to offer competitive private education loans for students and now parents to cover any gaps in college financing. The company is also investing millions to enhance multiple aspects of the customer experience from application through repayment and has moved all private education loan customer service to the United States.
