Learn how to find college scholarships efficiently and effectively!  Two-hour workshops are held monthly and are tailored for parents and their 9th to 12th grade students.  The workshop leader is Mary Lou Spann.               

To find out the next workshop dates and to register, call  763.755.5959 or email mlspann@spannassoc.com. 

• How the financial aid system works 

• What you can do NOW to prepare

• Techniques to find the right competitions for your student 

• Methods to speed up completing applications  

Advice for Parents. . .  

Looking for scholarship opportunities takes a lot of time, but it's straightforward and relatively easy to do,” stated  Mary Lou Spann, who ought to know. She spent hundreds of hours searching for scholarship opportunities for her daughter, a 2004 high school graduate. Spann learned time-saving search  techniques and application procedures that worked and paid for one full year of college for her daughter with some funds for the second, third and fourth years.  She now wants to share what she learned with other parents. 

Many parents do not know that there are hundreds of scholarship competitions for students in 9th to 12th grades, as well as for adults with a wide range of goals. Awards can be used for community colleges, four-year universities, job-related training programs and adult basic education programs. You do not need to have decided upon your college for most scholarship competitions. Many scholarships base their awards on factors other than grade point average, such as volunteer activities, positive attitude, overcoming difficult circumstances, leadership shown in school and non-school settings, and the number of years since leaving high school.

The best scholarship web sites are those with a search engine taking information about the student and presenting only those scholarships that meet the student’s profile. “Your time on the Internet is much more productive if you are reviewing only those scholarships that fit your student,” Spann remarked.  Spann has a Free Information Sheet for people who are just starting to look for scholarships on the web. By sending an email to scholarships@spannassoc.com people will automatically receive the free Information Sheet by return email. For all other questions, contact Mary Lou Spann at 763.755.5959 or mlspann@spannassoc.com.  For parents wanting more detailed information, Spann presents a monthly two-hour workshop in the Twin Cities.

Of course, there are no guarantees that a student will win a scholarship. If students do not win money for their  post-secondary training, there are still benefits. Spann noted that students applying for scholarships will have practiced constructively using the web, reading directions and writing essays, skills which will serve them well in any setting after high school.