Virginia Smith Trust Set to Award $600k in Grants and Scholarships

Thanks to a generous endowment that began nearly 50 years ago, high school seniors in Merced will be eligible for hundreds of thousands of dollars in scholarships and grants this spring.

The Virginia Smith Trust, which was part of Virginia Smith’s will, has benefited nearly 3,700 students since its inception in 1976 through nearly $6 million in scholarships awarded. This spring, the trust will award nearly 200 high school seniors in the city of Merced $500 grants to assist with college tuition and housing and has the capacity to award $500,000 in scholarships.

This is first year the trust will award grants and the first year the scholarship is available for high school seniors. VST has traditionally served college students who meet the eligibility requirements and has expanded to serve high school seniors.

“This is a great opportunity for high school seniors and truly fulfills Virginia’s dream of helping students achieve success through higher education,” said Merced County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Steve Tietjen, who also serves as executive director of the trust. “As the land is developed, the vision is to expand the scholarship opportunity to all Merced County high school students.”

The endowment has been well-invested and yielded a 7% annual return along with income generated from 550 acres of almonds on the VST land near UC Merced.

To be eligible for both the grant and the scholarship, students must be a senior at a high school in Merced and have attended a school in Merced for 3 years, on track to complete their A-G requirements by graduation and have a minimum GPA of 3.0.

The grants will be awarded to students in February and applications for round two, which is a competitive scholarship, are due by March 2. The minimum scholarship is $1,500.

For more information, email virginiasmith@mcoe.org