Education transfer students eligible for Excellence in Education scholarship competition at MC

The Excellence in Education scholarship at MC will help ensure some of the best-trained teachers will remain in Mississippi to practice.

A new grant focused on creating excellence in the field of education in Mississippi is funding eight $25,000 scholarships for incoming education transfer students at Mississippi College.

This grant, when combined with a student’s academic and merit scholarships, will create a full-ride scholarship package. Recipients of the “Excellence in Education” scholarships will be selected based on the quality of their applications, which include a resume, essay and interview.

To be eligible, transfer students must have junior-level credit hours upon arrival at MC; be pursuing an education major with a licensure in art education, English education, math education, music education, physical education, social studies education or elementary education; have a transfer GPA of 3.0 or above upon arrival at MC; submit the FAFSA to MC and have an SAI of less than 20,000; commit to participating in a four-semester MC cohort; and commit to teaching in Mississippi for at least two years after graduation.

“This scholarship opportunity will bring in some great students who are committed to teaching in Mississippi,” said Rachel Peeples, professor and interim chair of the Department of Teacher Education and Leadership at MC. “That’s exciting to us, because we’re investing in our own backyard.

“Our schools need good teachers, and Mississippi College prepares some of the very best. This competitive scholarship program will ensure they stay in Mississippi, which will be beneficial to the school districts with whom we have a partnership.”

Candidates for the competition must be admitted to MC before submitting any components for the competition.

Application components include a single-page resume outlining their academic and extracurricular involvements and achievements, and a one-page essay describing their connection to Mississippi and their commitment to teaching within the state.

In the 500-to-750-word essay, candidates should describe their motivation for becoming an educator and explain how their background, values and experiences have prepared them to serve the students and communities of Mississippi.

“We’re looking for good students, but we’re also looking for candidates who have a heart for their students,” Peeples said. “This opportunity lets great transfer students know that Mississippi College wants them in our program, that MC is committed to them and to the schools in our area, and that we’re trying to help them become the best that they can be.”

The deadline to submit items for the scholarship is 4:30 p.m. on Monday, April 13. Interviews for the competition will take place on the MC campus on Friday, April 17. Winners of the competition will be notified approximately four weeks after the interviews.

For more information, click here, email Kaitlin Turcotte at kmturcotte@mc.edu, or call (205) 810-6230.