In 2007, the Johnson Scholarship Foundation entered into a 2 year agreement with Rochester Institute of Technology’s National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID). Under the terms of the agreement, the Foundation granted $300,000 in 2007 and agreed to provide a further $300,000 in 2008. These grants will be matched by the federal government to create the “Johnson Scholarship Foundation Endowed Scholarship for Innovation and Entrepreneurship” for deaf and hard-of-hearing students pursuing studies in entrepreneurship. The entrepreneurship curriculum has been recently developed and responds to Rochester Institute of Technology’s new vision as an “Innovation University” with close ties to business. It also responds to the Foundation’s core value of entrepreneurship, as well as its mission to assist students with disabilities. Scholarships will be available only to deaf and hard-of-hearing students who demonstrate financial need.
As a group, deaf and hard-of-hearing students tend to demonstrate financial need. Half of these students come from families with a household income of less than $30,000 per year. Over 30% of these students are from families with household incomes of less than $18,000 per year. 96% of NTID’s graduates secure employment commensurate with their training.
This $1.2 million scholarship endowment will provide substantial motivation for deaf and hard-of-hearing students to consider focusing their studies on entrepreneurship and innovation. The lifelong success of these students will have a far reaching impact. These students will become part of the next generation of alumni entrepreneur mentors and the companies they build will become Rochester Institute of Technology’s future corporate partners, employers of its graduates.
The scholarship endowment agreement with Rochester Institute of Technology was supplemented by a second agreement which provides for matching scholarship funds of up to $100,000 in 2008 and 2009. In order to obtain these funds, Rochester Institute of Technology must obtain matching donations. The total Johnson Scholarship Foundation grant and Rochester Institute of Technology’s donations will be matched by the federal government and placed in an endowment to provide further scholarship support for deaf and hard-of-hearing students.
Anyone seeking scholarship assistance at Rochester Institute of Technology should contact Rochester Institute of Technology directly at www.rit.edu
