Fannie & Sam Constantino First Generation Scholarship Program

The First Generation Scholarship Program is a unique opportunity at St. John Fisher College. It is designed to provide financial assistance to high school students who exhibit a high degree of motivation and academic potential, and whose parents did not graduate from a post secondary institution.

Since its founding in 1948, St. John Fisher College has enrolled a high percentage of first generation college students. The College wishes to ensure that today’s first generation students can continue to benefit from a college education.

In this program, you’ll be part of a Learning Community and participate in an academic mentoring program in the Rochester community.

To apply for this unique scholarship, students must complete the online First Generation Scholarship Application and apply for admission to the College by the preferred date of December 1, 2009.

The final deadline for students to complete the on-line scholarship application and apply to the College is January 15, 2010. Recipients of this scholarship will be notified no later than March 31, 2010.

Each year, up to 24 students are offered the First Generation Scholarship. Recipients receive yearly awards ranging from $5,000 to one-half of tuition and on campus room and board depending on demonstrated financial need.

About the Program

Since its founding in 1948, St. John Fisher College has enrolled a high percentage of first generation college students. In honor of its 50th anniversary in 1998, the College renewed its commitment to today’s first generation students by creating the Fannie & Sam Constantino First Generation Scholarship Program. This program provides access to a St. John Fisher College education for up to 36 qualified students who desire it. Since approximately 70% of our alumni stay in the Rochester area, such a program serves to reinforce the College’s commitment to the Greater Rochester Community as well.

First Generation College Students at Fisher

The first classes enrolled at Fisher in the early 1950s were comprised predominately of men from working-class backgrounds, many of whom were older than the traditional college age. The College’s student body, however, has changed a great deal over the years. Women were first enrolled in 1971 and now make up nearly 60% of total enrollment. The ethnic and racial diversity of the student body has also changed dramatically. However, the overall proportion of first generation college students has remained high throughout Fisher’s history.

Currently, about half of Fisher’s students come from families in which parents do not have college degrees, and one-third of Fisher’s students come from families in which the parents have no college experience. Over the years, faculty and staff at the College have demonstrated an understanding of these students’ needs and, more importantly, a realization of their vast potential for contributing to their community as college-educated individuals.

Benefits of the First Generation Scholarship Program

Recipients of the First Generation Scholarship will enroll in St. John Fisher College as freshmen, directly out of high school. The first-year program of coursework and advising at the College is ideally suited to meet the needs of first generation students. Fisher offers students access to an outstanding faculty who can enable students to discover their natural abilities and to develop their minds.

First Generation Scholarship recipients participate in a Learning Community designed to assist them in making a successful transition to a college environment. While attending St. John Fisher College, First Generation Scholarship recipients must remain in good academic standing.

Giving Back to the Rochester Community

First Generation Scholars participate in an academic mentoring program in the Rochester community. This program allows them to mentor younger students in ways that encourage their interest in and pursuit of a college education.