Shakopee Dollars for Scholars® Receives $10,000 Matching Grant.

Shakopee, August 15, 2014 - Shakopee Dollars for Scholars® (SDFS) is pleased to announce that it has been awarded a $10,000 matching grant from Scholarship America, the parent organization to Dollars for Scholars affiliates across the country.

The grant, if matched with an equal amount of funds raised by Shakopee Dollars for Scholars, will provide deserving students the opportunity to receive financially impactful, renewable scholarships, further aligning itself with Scholarship America's renewed focus of helping students complete their degree or program with a reduced level of debt.

"Renewable, financially impactful scholarships that are directed to students with the greatest financial need will be an important tool to improving educational outcomes in our Dollars for Scholars communities," said Scholarship America's President and CEO, Lauren Segal. "Our goal with the Dollars for Scholars Affiliate Matching program is to partner with our affiliates and their local supporters to build and sustain renewable scholarship opportunities so that more students across the country can complete their degree or program with a reduced level of debt."

"We are very proud to have received this award. Only 17 chapters nationwide were offered these matching grants," said Ray Hussong, President of the Shakopee Dollars for Scholars Chapter.

"Next to the original founding of our organization in 1979, this is probably our most significant individual accomplishment. This matching grant will allow us to help students not only get into college, but stay in college to fulfill their dreams."

"Our board of directors has laid out some great ideas to raise the $10,000. We will also need the continual support of the Shakopee community to make this dream come true. Each year it has been a challenge to give out more scholarship money to our students, but we have never had an increase of $10,000 in a single year. What makes this so exciting is that by raising an extra $10,000 over and above last year, it will actually become $20,000 because of the matching grant. We are determined to make this happen."