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Scholarships & Grants

Wa Sung Community Service Club offers three types of grants: scholarships to graduating high school seniors, educational grants to schools, and charity grants to non-profit organizations.

Merit Award Scholarships

The 2023 Merit Scholarship Application is now available!

 

The Wa Sung Community Service Club is pleased to announce the 67th Annual Merit Award Scholarship program for 2023. We will be awarding one $2,500 Community Service Scholarship and at least ten scholarships of $1,500 each. The awards given are possible through our annual fundraisers, the Perpetual Scholarship Fund, and donations from members and other patrons. 

 

To qualify, the applicant must be a graduating high school senior of Asian descent currently attending school in Alameda County or Contra Costa County and will be attending community college, state college or university in the Fall of 2023.  Selection of awardees will be based upon individual scholastic achievement, involvement in extra-curricular activities, work experience, community service and financial need. Community college bound applicants are encouraged to apply.


Please provide this information to any family members or friends who have a qualified senior.


Completed application and documents are to be sent electronically to wasung.merit@gmail.com with the subject title: 2023 Merit Awards and the student’s name. 


The deadline date and time to receive the complete application packet is April 10, 2023 at 11:59 PM PST. Applicants will be notified by the last week of April. All decisions of the Scholarship Committee are final. 
 

If there are any questions, please contact Donna Chan Chu at wasung.merit@gmail.com or 510-869-2589.

More on the Merit Scholarship

Wa Sung Community Service Club began awarding scholarships in 1957 to outstanding students of Asian descent graduating from high schools in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. Since then over 800 scholarships have been awarded. The scholarships are funded from the Perpetual Scholarship Fund, fundraising events, and generous donations from individuals. Each year, 10 to 15 scholarships of $1,500 each are awarded. We usually accept applications between March and April, and hold the award ceremony in May. Interested applicants should check the Wa Sung website in March for scholarship information and for downloading the application form. Applications are evaluated based on a number of criteria including scholastic achievement, extracurricular activities, community service activities, leadership, and financial need. Membership in Wa Sung Community Service Club is not required. ​

Educational Grants

With all the recent State and County budget cuts in education, there is a growing need for more community involvement with educational institutions and agencies. Wa Sung's Educational Grant Program, which was established in 1991, is stepping up to fill a little of the void that has left many schools strapped for funds for some of their programs.

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One of the projects of the Educational Grants Committee that was started in 2011 by Cimberly Eng-Tamura is a book donation program. Its goal is to add a collection of multi-cultural children's books to several selected elementary schools' library. Cimberly has researched hard before selecting three elementary schools representing different school districts and demographics – John Muir in Berkeley, Laurel in Oakland, and James Monroe in San Leandro – to receive the books. She has also carefully selected a total of nineteen books representing a variety of ethnic groups so that children can learn at a young age about cultures that are different than their own.

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Another on-going project of the Educational Grants Committee is to review applications received from various education facilities to fund special projects. In 2012, Wa Sung had contributed about $2,000 to requests ranging from field trips, purchase of iPad for special needs children, and a program where students exchange letters and videos with a school in Japan in order to raise awareness and empathy in the wake of the tragic events over there. In 2013, the Educational Grants Committee made a $1,000 grant to Lincoln Elementary School to help fund its Yosemite science camp for 5th graders.

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As a community service organization, we are continually looking for worthwhile projects to support, particularly projects that will:​

  • Enhance the basic skills program or the learning resources of schools serving Asian students;

  • Present innovative ways of promoting better understanding of the Asian or Asian American culture, arts, and historical contributions;

  • Provide activities to mainstream and aid newcomers into the community at large.​

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Projects will be evaluated on merit. Up to $1,000 may be granted per project. Efforts will be made to serve the needs of a cross section of grade levels and target populations. We are also looking for donations in order to have the necessary resources to fund them. So if you know of any school projects that need a little extra funding, or anybody who would like to contribute financially to our Educational Grant Program, please contact us at wasungserviceclub@gmail.com.

Charity Grants

The Wa Sung Charity Grants offer charitable donations to tax-exempt organizations that are in alignment with Wa Sung's mission statement and eligibility requirements. Additionally, programs should service the Greater East Bay Area and not service a private foundation, an individual, a social dinner banquet, a political organization, an organization having unlawful employment practices or discriminatory service practice and an organization for profit. The reviewing process involves the Wa Sung Charity Grant Committee, which will confirm that applications received meet the eligibility requirements and if they do, will then proceed in the selection process. The selected Charity Grant applications proceed to the Wa Sung Board for approval / disapproval. This grant process occurs quarterly and will allow a more structured approach in supporting the community in donations and offer control on the annual budget. There are application submittal deadlines and donation distribution dates on the application. Up to $1,000 may be awarded for each project.

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