PPEF Scholarships | FEATURE | OCTOBER 2022 | 49 This year, students at universities ranging fromNew York to Tennessee, Utah, Hawaii andmany other states are receiving financial assistance on behalf of the Promotional Products Educational Foundation (PPEF). The recipients are all part of the promotional products family; a few are industry employees themselves, and the rest have parents or guardians who work for distributors, suppliers, business service companies or multiline representatives. Some of them even recall the early years of their families’ companies or preparing for and attending trade shows in their youth. While all the students are connected to the promo industry, the financial aid is helping them in their missions to study in fields as diverse as business administration, design, kinesiology and international studies, equipping them for careers in all sorts of fields. For over 30 years, PPEF, the most significant philanthropic arm of PPAI, has been dedicated to recognizing and encouraging scholastic excellence and academic performance among promotional products industry employees and their college-aged children. Since 1989, the organization has awarded $3,026,500 to 1,618 students. This year alone, $299,000 of scholarships went to 130 new recipients and 32 renewal recipients. The 2022 recipients were mailed their scholarships in July in advance of the academic year. For four-year and one-year scholarships, PPEF’s policy is to award 60% of scholarships based on need and 40% based on merit. Merit-based scholars receive $1,250, and need-based scholars receive $2,250 payments. This year, 52% of the recipients came from companies with less than $1 million in reported sales. 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 minimum GPA 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 online application for the 2023-24 school year opens in January 2023 and can be found at www.ppef.us/collegescholarships.
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