Soaring – Bishop’s Blog
From Bishop Swanson
United Methodist commitment to higher education
September 26, 2008
I just received in the mail a list of the Holston Conference United Methodist students who are receiving scholarships from the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry. These students depend greatly on these funds to pay for the rising cost of higher educations. The funds for the scholarships come basically from two sources: the offerings we give in our local churches as we celebrate World Communion Sunday on Oct. 5 and United Methodist Student Day on Nov. 30.
The Office of Loans and Scholarships have awarded this year a total $4.9 million in scholarships and loans. In the Holston Conference we contributed $18,634 last year to this fund. The students from our conference received $86,150 in loans and scholarships. I realize that the students and their parents greatly appreciate the financial assistance of their United Methodist Church. I want to encourage the churches of Holston to celebrate World Communion Sunday and United Methodist Student Day by giving sacrificially to this worthwhile cause.
In addition to providing financial support to undergraduates actively involved in their local churches or campus ministries, there are other funds such as the Rev. Dr. Karen Layman Gift of Hope 21st Century Scholars Program, the Ethnic Minority Scholarship Fund, the HANA Scholars Program and the UM Scholarship Fund. These scholarships are only made possible by your contributions. In this age in which a college education is becoming increasingly expensive, it is important that we provide assistance to so many persons who do not have the financial resources available to them to attend a college or university.