Gifts to Support Scholarship Accounts

Scholarships provide immediate funding to help students participate in NCSD leadership development programs and provide funding for continuation of their program of study. To create a scholarship a gift of $500 or greater is required. Scholarship funds are not professionally invested and generally funds are allocated as one-time scholarship awards. Donors may renew the scholarships each year at their discretion. NCSD has also established a list of scholarships for annual contribution for one time awards below. Help NCSD reach more students in need, please consider donating today.

Terry O’Banion Shared Journey Exemplary Practice Award

A special feature of the NCSD annual conference is the designation of exemplary practices aimed at furthering student development in community colleges. This process is named the Terry O’Banion Shared Journey Exemplary Practice Award, after the past President of the League for Innovation in the Community College and one of the most recognized and esteemed leaders of student development in higher education in the United States. Through this special application process, nominees present details of an existing or new program in terms of its goals, implementation approaches, and outcomes. Only the most outstanding proposals are selected, and designated as Gold, Silver, and Bronze recipients. Programs given these awards are deemed outstanding because they are highly innovative and model best practices in the field, and because the evidence of effectiveness includes compelling results over time. Recipients need not be members of NCSD to be selected for this award. Only one program per institution will be awarded. Any member of the Executive Board whose institution has a nomination will not judge. Finalists will be invited to attend the NCSD National Conference in October where the Gold, Silver, and Bronze recipients will be awarded.

Dissertation Research Scholarship

This award bestows recognition to an individual whose doctoral dissertation excels in making a substantial contribution to the literature and/or practice of community college student development. A substantial contribution is defined as dissertation research that makes a major contribution to the literature on community college student development, revises understanding of a researchable problem associated with community college student development, or looks at community college student development in a new way. The dissertation may also be an interdisciplinary effort that identifies a research problem new to the field. Dissertations utilizing a diversity of methodological approaches are encouraged. Only dissertations judged to be truly outstanding will be recognized regardless of the number of dissertation manuscripts submitted. Recipients need not be members of NCSD to be selected for this award.

STEM/STEAM Award

The STEM/STEAM scholarship will be awarded to students majoring in the STEM/STEAM field. The recipients will be chosen based upon review of STEM/STEAM project, of their choice, that focuses on advancements, equity, and inclusion in the community college system through STEM/STEAM. Awards and the number of participants selected will be contingent upon funds received annually.

Technology Transformation in Education Award

A special feature of the NCSD annual conference is the designation of exemplary practices aimed at furthering innovation and transformation in education. Jaime Casap is the Chief Education Evangelist at Google, Inc. Jaime evangelizes the power and potential of the web, technology, and Google tools as enabling and supporting capabilities in pursuit of creating powerful learning models. Jaime Casap, has set the bar for challenging educators to disrupt poverty through education. Mr. Casap believes educators and leaders must focus on “problem-based” teaching and integrated community based modeling to improve systems supporting students and preparing them with skills for tomorrow. The recipient of the Transformation in Education Award will deliver innovative strategies for dramatic change and narrowing the equity gap in student access and completion, housing, food security, transportation, workforce development and job placement.

Transformational Leadership Award

A special feature of the NCSD annual conference is the designation of exemplary practices aimed at furthering professional development of higher education leaders and commitment to closing the equity gap. Monica Sharma, trained as a physician and epidemiologist, worked for the United Nations since 1988 for 22 years. Currently, she engages worldwide as an International Expert and Practitioner on Leadership Development for sustainable and equitable change. For example, she developed and implemented transformational leadership programs in 40 countries generating multiple innovations and large-scale results impacting 4.5 million directly and another 130 million in the context of HIV AIDS as the global Director of the HIV/AIDS program of United Nations Development Program. She led teams for policy formulation, strategic direction and program development in 60 countries, building multi-stakeholders partnerships with governments, media, civil society and business.

She has published and presented over 250 articles in journals and international forums. In 2009, Monica Sharma received “The Spirit of the United Nations Award”.

The Transformational Leadership award recognizes community college  professionals leading the way to interrupt exclusion through humanitarian work in schools and communities.