Dear Rising Star Applicant:
Congratulations on obtaining your copy of the Rising Star Scholarship application. Inspire Us is a nonprofit organization dedicated to enhancing the lives of those in the Pee Dee Region of South Carolina by
equipping them with the necessary tools to live inspired lives. Our mission is to inspire individuals to
achieve their highest potential by providing people and livelihood skills. The Inspire Us executive team is
dedicated to the mission statement of the organization. We envision a community built on inspiring one
another. The Rising Star Scholarship was created to help individuals pursue higher education. We know
the value of higher education, and our goal is to help alleviate some of the financial pressures that may
arise from pursuing a higher education. We hope to be able to serve you in your upcoming educational
endeavors. Please be sure to complete your application in its entirety and satisfy all of the requirements.
The deadline for submitting the Rising Star Scholarship is Friday, June 30, 2017. Congratulations once
again, and we thank you for your interest.
Sincerely,
Inspire Us Executive Staff
PO Box 4892| Florence, South Carolina 29502 | 843-608-0367 | www.inspire-us.org
Dear Rising Star Applicant,
It is our desire to help you in your upcoming educational endeavors. In order for us to help you, please
submit a completed application packet by Friday, June 30, 2017. The application must be received by the
June 30, 2017 deadline. The required documents are listed below.
(1) Completed Rising Star Application
(2) A copy of your acceptance letter from an accredited college or university (This must be on your college or
university’s letterhead)
(3) High school transcript showing minimum 2.0 Unweight GPA (4.0 scale) (must be in sealed envelope) *
(4) Two letters of recommendation from professionals DO NOT use friends or family members (must be in sealed
envelopes)
(5) Community service project proposal
Please send your completed application to the following address:
Inspire Us
PO Box 4892
Florence, SC 29502
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact an Inspire Us Executive team
member at 843-608-0367 or visit our website (www.inspire-us.org). Again, thank you for your interest in
the Rising Star Scholarship.
Sincerely,
Inspire Us Executive Staff
*An unofficial transcript may be sent for the purpose of satisfying the scholarship application
requirement; however, an official transcript showing completion of high school and the date high school
diploma was received will be required if you are selected as a Rising Star Scholarship recipient.
PO Box 4892| Florence, South Carolina 29502 | 843-608-0367 | www.inspire-us.org
Rising Star Scholarship Application
Name: _______________________________________ Date: _________________________________
Home Address:
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Phone (please include area code): _________________________________________________________
High School Name and Graduation Date: ___________________________________________________
Name and Address of College/University You Will Attend:
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Major/Minor: _________________________________________________________________________
Extracurricular, Community, and Nonprofit/Church Activities:
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Hobbies and Special Skills: _______________________________________________________________
What are your educational and career goals?
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Please note that completed application packets do not guarantee you a scholarship; it simply means that you meet the eligibility requirements.
All submitted applications become the property of Inspire Us.
PO Box 4892| Florence, South Carolina 29502 | 843-608-0367 | www.inspire-us.org
Community Service Project Proposal Guideline Sheet
Please review this sheet in its entirety. This sheet will guide you in developing your
community service project proposal. You must include all parts that are identified below:
Name: Please include your first and last name
Project Name: What is your project? Be specific about what you will do.
Need: Why is this project needed? For whom will it benefit?
Project Descriptions: Briefly describe your project and the main activities of your project.
Project Outline: Briefly outline the steps you took to plan, implement, and complete the
project.
Potential Project Problems: Describe the problems, if any, that occurred during the project.
Explain how these problems were handled.
Project Impact: Describe the impact you believe your project will have on the community or on
the people who will receive your services.
Project Accomplishments: What do you hope to accomplish as a result of your work? Describe
what you learned about yourself and the importance of giving something back to others.
PO Box 4892| Florence, South Carolina 29502 | 843-608-0367 | www.inspire-us.org
Sample Community Service Project Proposal
Name: John Doe
Project Name: HOPE (Helping Other People Excel)
Need: Project HOPE is needed to help students, both male and female, that have been labeled
at-risk. Too many students have been labeled at-risk without the hope of recovering. Project
HOPE will benefit any student (k-12) that has been labeled due to behavioral, social, or
academic concerns.
Project Descriptions: Project HOPE will involve school-age students receiving mentorship from
college students or other adults that are willing to help students overcome their behavioral,
social, or academic struggles. Project HOPE will include the following: a project coordinator,
students, parents, teachers, school faculty/staff member, college students, and professionals.
Project HOPE will meet on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays from 8am to 12noon at the 1213 Horace
Mann Drive. Identified students will be assigned to a mentoring group that will not exceed 3
students. Mentors will go through an intense training in the areas of behavioral, social, and
academics. The project coordinator will provide a detailed curriculum for the mentors to follow
as a guideline. Students will go through 24 courses with their mentors to overcome their
struggles with behavior, social and/or academic. At the end of the 24 courses, students and
mentors will participate in a fieldtrip and have luncheon to celebrate their success.
Project Outline:
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Project coordinator creates a curriculum focused in areas of behavior, social
interactions, and academic excellence. This curriculum will be based on researchedbased practices that have proven track records for success.
Project coordinator will network with colleges, professional organizations, community
agencies that work with students (Boys and Girls clubs, schools, daycares, YMCA, etc…)
to identify potential mentors that will be a part of Project Hope and to secure a safe
location to meet on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays.
Project Coordinators will contact local school district(s) to distribute flyers about this
opportunity for students who may benefit from a mentoring program focused on
behavior, social interactions, and academic excellence.
Project coordinator along with identified mentors will hold an interest meeting to
provide students and parents with an overview of Project Hope.
Project Hope team members will meet on the 2nd and 4th Saturday of each month at the
secure location. During the initial meeting, participants will take a pretest that will be
used to guide the mentoring services provided.
The project coordinator will provide parents periodic updates (quarterly) regarding their
students’ progress in the program.
PO Box 4892| Florence, South Carolina 29502 | 843-608-0367 | www.inspire-us.org
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Members from Project Hope will present to district and community sponsors biannually
on the progress of their project.
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At the conclusion of Project Hope, student participants will take a post-test. This data
will be used to rate the effectiveness of the project and determine what needs to be
adjusted for the next term. The project coordinator will schedule a field trip for
participants. Following the last session, a luncheon will be provided for the community
sponsors, district personnel, parents, student participants, and mentor to highlight
Project Hope’s impact on the students, mentors, project coordinator, and the
community.
Potential Project Problems: Funding could be a potential problem. Sponsorships will be needed
in the form of private donations or grants. If possible, mentors will be paid a small stipend. If
not, mentor will know upfront that this is strictly volunteer based. Recruiting the right people is
key. If a mentor decides to stop volunteering before the conclusion of Project Hope, it could
potentially be disastrous for all involved especially the student participants. Another problem
area would be transportation to and from the event. Due to liability concerns, parents will be
asked to bring their children to the site for the mentoring program. To overcome this,
community organizations such as churches or other nonprofit organization with vans can be
used. If these organizations agree to provide this service, parents would have to sign a release
of liability form.
Project Impact: Project Hope will benefit the community greatly because it will provide a
foundation of positive and acceptable behaviors that student participants need to exhibit in
order to be successful in school and in life. The student participants will be provided with
researched-based practices in the area of behavior, social interactions, and academic
excellence. Not only will this project affect the student participants, but also, the mentors,
parent(s), school personnel that are involved in the lives of the student participants, and the
community at large. The phrase “it takes a village to raise a child” is a mandate for the
community to take action.
Project Accomplishments: Through Project Hope, lives will be changed, and students will be
inspired to be great. Giving back is important. Through Project Hope, time, money, and talents
will be used to empower students to overcome the labels that have been placed on them by
society.
Please note that completed application packets do not guarantee you a scholarship; it simply means that you meet the eligibility requirements.
All submitted applications become the property of Inspire Us.
PO Box 4892| Florence, South Carolina 29502 | 843-608-0367 | www.inspire-us.org