OAKLAND, Calif.—Beginning March 16, 2001, Alameda and Contra Costa county children from low- to moderate-income homes entering grades K-12 will be able to apply for need- and merit-based tuition scholarships for the 2001-2002 school year to attend private or parochial schools of their choice. The deadline for applications to the Independent Scholarship Fund is Friday, May 4, 2001.

Begun in 1999 thanks to generous donations from local foundations interested in improving youth education, the Independent Scholarship Fund (ISF) has already helped more than 200 students attend area private schools. The ISF will award more than 200 scholarships—and possibly many more depending on contributions received—for the 2001-2002 school year.

“Contributors to the ISF are providing a higher quality and safer educational environment to the East Bay’s disadvantaged youth now, not some future time when the ongoing battles over how to ‘fix’ the public schools might be resolved,” said David J. Theroux, president and founder of The Independent Institute, which administers the ISF.

Principals from numerous East Bay private schools, such as De La Salle High School, Golden Gate Academy, Holy Rosary, Northern Light School, Patten Academy, Shelton’s Primary Education Center, St. Leonard, and Wood Rose Academy, have praised the ISF for helping them welcome more students to their schools.

ISF scholarships pay up to 75 percent of the cost of a student’s tuition, up to $1,500 each school year. Parents are responsible for the remaining portion, which encourages positive parental involvement in their child’s education.

According to studies touting the benefits of increased competition among public and private schools, the ISF is improving access to high-quality educational opportunities for the East Bay’s youth. Through its continued growth, the ISF will enable more families to choose the best education for their children.

To obtain a scholarship application or for further information about the ISF, please contact Katherine Shearer, Director, Independent Scholarship Fund, by mail at 100 Swan Way, Oakland, CA 94621, by telephone at (510) 632-1366, by e-mail at [email protected], or visit The Independent Institute’s website at http://www.independent.org.