Program Overview

 

Questa Foundation for Education, in partnership with WorkOne Northeast, expanded its Questa Scholars Program in 2011 to provide college financial assistance to transitioning workers in northeast Indiana who seek to increase their job skills by securing an associate or baccalaureate degree in STEM-based training programs or disciplines of study with direct relevance and applicability to the advanced manufacturing, defense, and aerospace industries.

 

Transitioning workers are broadly defined as any person in the current or emerging workforce who seeks a degree to attain, enhance, or expand job skills.  Transitioning workers include adult learners, dislocated workers, incumbent workers wishing to up skill, and traditional college-aged students who seek a degree to more competitively contribute to our region’s workforce needs.

 

Eligible programs of study include engineering, advanced manufacturing, computer science, informatics, and a variety of technology programs (information technology, industrial technology, engineering technology, biotechnology, etc.).  At this time, medical technology does not qualify.

 

The Questa Scholars Program for Transitioning Workers will provide up to $20,000 in grants and loans over four years for full-time students pursuing a baccalaureate degree and up to $10,000 in grants and loans over two years for full-time students pursuing an associate degree in eligible fields of study.  Questa Scholars selected for participation in the program will benefit from $6,000 in WorkOne grants and either $14,000 or $4,000 respectively in Questa Foundation loans (depending on enrollment in a four or two-year degree program).

 

Eligibility

 

The Questa Scholars Program for Transitioning Workers is available to both traditional and non-traditional students (adult learners) with a high school diploma or GED who are residents of one of these four (4) counties of northeast Indiana: Allen, DeKalb, Huntington, and Whitley.

 

Students must be enrolled full-time (minimum of 12 credit hours) in an eligible associate or baccalaureate degree program at one of nine partner institutions in northeast Indiana: Grace College, Huntington University, Indiana Tech, Indiana Wesleyan University, IPFW, Ivy Tech Community College Northeast, Manchester College, Trine University, or University of Saint Francis.

 

Non-traditional students (adult learners) who are enrolled in a degree completion program also are eligible to apply irrespective of the number of credit hours already earned.

 

Applicants are selected on the basis of academic and professional merit and financial need through a competitive selection process. Selected participants will be notified in early July.

 

Program Benefits

 

The Questa Scholars Program for Transitioning Workers provides participants an attractive combination of WorkOne grants and Questa Foundation loans.

 

The Questa Scholars Program for Transitioning Workers is only available to qualified students who attend Questa Foundation’s northeast Indiana-based partnering schools.  All participants are eligible for:

 

1. Up to 50% in loan forgiveness from Questa Foundation if they graduate with a 2.75 or higher cumulative GPA within the approved time frame and elect to live and work in the eleven (11) counties of northeast Indiana for at least five (5) years after college; and
2. An additional 25% in loan repayment assistance from their alma mater. 

 

This means participants in the Questa Scholars Program for Transitioning Workers are eligible for up to 75% in loan forgiveness and debt repayment assistance.

 

Associate Degree Candidates

 

Students selected for participation who pursue an eligible associate degree program will be awarded a $6,000 WorkOne grant, payable over two years, according to the following schedule:

 

• $4,500 grant available in the first academic year ($2,500 payable in the first semester and $2,000 in the second semester); and
• $1,500 grant in the second year (payable in the first semester). 

 

These students also are eligible for up to $4,000 in Questa Foundation loans with eligibility to borrow:

 

• $500 loan in the second semester of the first year;
• $1,000 loan during the first semester of the second year; and
• $2,500 loan during the final semester of the second year.

 

The combination of WorkOne grants and Questa Foundation loans may not exceed $5,000 per academic year (August-May) or $2,500 per semester (August-December or January-May).

 

Baccalaureate Degree Candidates

 

Students selected for participation who pursue an eligible bachelor’s degree program will be awarded a $6,000 WorkOne grant, payable over the initial two years, according to the following schedule:

 

• $4,500 grant available in the first academic year ($2,500 payable in the first semester and $2,000 in the second semester); and
• $1,500 grant in the second year (payable in the first semester). 

 

These students also are eligible for up to $14,000 in Questa Foundation loans with eligibility to borrow:

 

• $500 loan in the second semester of the first year;
• $1,000 loan during the first semester of the second year; 
• $2,500 loan during the second semester of the second year; and
• $2,500 loan per semester for the remaining two years (4 semesters) of study.

 

Additional WorkOne Northeast Support Services

 

WorkOne Northeast also will make available to Questa Scholars support services to assist students facing academic or financial hardship. These services include tutoring assistance and special funding to help students facing financial difficulty.

 

Other support services include assistance with career assessment, internships, job placement, and many Microsoft Office workshops to enhance computer and technology skills available at no charge.

 

Program Requirements

 

 

1. Submit a completed Questa Scholars application no later than 4:00 p.m. on May 1.  The application period opens on March 1 each year. 

 

Please note:  There is a special, customized application for non-traditional Questa Scholar applicants. A link to this application for transitioning workers will be available on Questa Foundation's website on March 1. Non-traditional Questa Scholars are defined as those who graduated high school prior to 2011.  Those who graduate high school in 2012 or graduated in 2011 should complete the standard Questa Scholars application which will be available on Questa Foundation's website on March 1.  Recent high school graduates pursuing eligible fields of study will automatically be considered for the WorkOne grant opportunity.

 

2. Applicants who will graduate high school in 2012 or graduated in 2011 must have a 2.75 or higher cumulative GPA to apply and must meet all the eligibility requirements for the traditional Questa Scholars Program as posted at http://www.questafoundation.org/eligibility.html.

 

 

3. Applicants must be enrolled full-time beginning with the Fall 2012 term (August or early September start date) and remain enrolled full-time during their course of study. Proof of acceptance into the degree program is required with the application.

 

 

a. An associate degree candidate must complete his or her program        within two years of full-time study. 

b. A baccalaureate degree student must complete his or her

    program within four years (8 semesters) of full time study.

 

 

4. Applicants must demonstrate financial need. For most applicants, this will be accomplished by providing the Student Aid Report (SAR) after filing the FAFSA.  If the applicant is a non-traditional student and a FAFSA was not filed by March 10, the applicant’s most recent income tax return and W-2 must be provided, along with other requested application materials (see below).

 

5. Applicants selected for participation in the Questa Scholars Program for Transitioning Workers must comply with all the requirements and expectations of the general Questa Scholars Program. (Please visit http://www.questafoundation.org/requirements.html.)

 

6. Applicants selected for participation in the Questa Scholars Program for Transitioning Workers are required to become a WorkOne client before receiving WorkOne grant funds.  These requirements include:

 

a. Complete the WorkOne client intake and Academic and Career Assessment process. This will occur in a specially designed setting in July for all Questa Scholars who are eligible for WorkOne grants. This must be completed before grant funds can be issued and must occur before classes begin.

 

b. Agree to communicate monthly with an assigned WorkOne academic career advisor.

 

c. Inform WorkOne and Questa Foundation immediately of any academic or financial difficulty encountered so that support can be garnered to overcome these barriers;

 

d. Questa Foundation must receive required official documentation, including the university billing statement, at least 10 days before classes begin or WorkOne grants cannot be issued. No WorkOne grants are issued after a student begins classes.

 

 

7. WorkOne grant funds can be used for these college-related costs:

 

a.     Tuition

b.     Books (with supporting documentation)

c.     Mandatory fees (as reflected on a student’s billing statement)

 

8. No grant or loan funds are available for summer terms for either traditional or non-traditional students (May through August).

 

9. Non-traditional students who are in shorter class sessions for year-long study may receive grants or loans on a semester basis in August and December or January.  Universities will need to issue billing statements that reflect amounts due sufficient to grant or lend up to $2,500 per semester (August-December or January-May terms).

 

Application Process and Documents

 

For applicants who graduated high school this year or last year, the standard Questa Scholars application should be used.  The standard Questa Scholars application will be posted on Questa Foundation's website on March 1.  If these applicants are pursuing studies in eligible fields, they will automatically be considered for the Questa Scholars Program for Transitioning Workers and be eligible for WorkOne grant funds in addition to Questa Foundation loans.

 

For applicants who are non-traditional students who graduated from high school prior to 2011, the special Questa Scholars Program for Transitioning Workers application, which will be available on Questa Foundation's website on March 1, should be used. 

 

It is important that applicants use the correct application.  Recent high school graduates (2011 or 2012) who do not use the standard Questa Scholars application will not be considered.

 

The application deadline is 4:00 p.m. on May 1. No extensions will be granted.