PPB September 2021

Nevertheless, many students persevered, maintaining their grades through the pandemic, despite the surrounding economic uncertainty and social unrest. Continuing its more than 30-year commitment to uplifting and supporting higher education for industry students, the Promotional Products Education Foundation (PPEF) is awarding $278,750 in scholarships for the 2021-2022 academic year. PPEF Board Chair Carrie Pitre says, “With all the changes and uncertainty of the past year, the PPEF Board of Trustees felt it was vital that we did not change one more thing. We are thrilled that we were able to maintain not only the number of scholarships awarded, but also the dollar amount of each scholarship. This is a testament to our generous donors, our strong industry community, and the dedicated Board coming together to make the education goals of our children the highest priority.” PPEF, the nonprofit arm of PPAI, is dedicated to recognizing and encouraging scholastic excellence and academic performance among promotional products industry employees and their college-aged children and has awarded more than $2.7 million to 1,488 recipients since its founding in 1989. This year, PPEF is awarding 130 new and 31 renewal scholarships to selected recipients who have displayed exceptional academic achievement, extracurricular participation and community service. Each winner will receive between $1,000 and $9,000 in support of their college education. PPEF’s scholarship awards are determined through a competitive application process. Among the requirements, each applicant must be a full-time promotional products industry employee or the dependent child of an industry employee; must have a minimumGPA of 3.0 and must meet the deadline of March 15 at midnight PDT. Those being considered for need-based scholarships must also submit a copy of the Student Aid Report that a student receives after filing with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The scholarship application deadline for the 2022-23 school year is March 15, 2022; the online application form opens in January 2022 at www.ppef.us/college-scholarships. The Promotional Products Education Foundation’s scholarship program, funded by PPAI and generous donations from companies and individuals within the promotional products industry, enables youth and industry professionals to continue their education at the collegiate level. View the full list of donors at www.ppef.us/all-donors-2 and learn how you can support PPEF and invest in educating the next generation. The Promotional Pr oducts Education Foundation’s scholarship program, funded by PPAI and generous donations from companies and individuals within the promotional products industry, enables youth and industry professionals to continue their education at the collegiate level. View the full list of donors at www.ppef.us/all-donors-2 and learn how you can support PPEF and invest in educating the next generation. PPEF Scholarship Recipients 2021 | FEATURE | SEPTEMBER 2021 | 81