With the recession and rising tuition making college less affordable, FAMU traveled to South Florida this week to promising students futures bright with to offer of free money in the form of a scholarship.FAMU President James H. Ammons and university officials traveled to West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale to recruit high school seniors. Scholarships were awarded on the spot to students who meet academic criteria and major in certain high-demand areas, officials said.
"Right now with this economy, we find that a number of students have everything that it takes to go to college, except hope and money," Ammons said in a telephone interview.
Ammons and his team will stopped at Palm Beach Lakes High School to meet with students, sponsored a scholarship reception at the Renaissance Fort Lauderdale hotel.
To qualify for the scholarships, students had to be National Achievement semifinalists or finalists planning to major in biology, chemistry, physics, environmental science or mathematics or have at least an 1100 SAT score and 23 ACT score. Students who are not semifinalists could qualify if they have at least a 3.5 grade-point average and 1300 SAT or 29 ACT.
Scholarships range from $1,000 a semester to a full, four-year ride with a laptop computer and guaranteed summer internship. Private money funds those scholarships, Ammons said.
"We'll have scholarships available for all students we meet who qualify," Ammons said.
While most state universities are capping enrollment, FAMU has room to grow, Ammons said. The freshman class is about 2,000 this year, and officials want to increase that to 2,600 this fall. FAMU has about 11,800 students, including 1,104 from Broward County.
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