Closing the Gap: Scholarships Provide Critical Dollars
By Gabriela Arosemena and William Newton
January 12, 2024
“I wouldn’t have been able to attend JBU without your gifts to JBU scholarships.”
It’s a frequent refrain across campus as students gather to write thank-you notes to donors that share their journeys to JBU, what they’re studying and their favorite experiences in college.
Recent surveys of high school seniors and their parents rank cost and financial aid as the second-most important factor in selecting a college, according to Forbes. Academic quality is first.
For families desiring a Christ-centered education, the cost is usually a more significant barrier, with the most expensive Christian universities listing tuition and room and board at nearly $70,000.
JBU, continuing with founder John E. Brown Sr.’s mission of an affordable Christian education, works diligently to keep student costs low, falling within the bottom third of Christian college costs in the U.S. With a listed tuition, room and board price of just over $42,000, the reality is that the average federal, state and institutional aid for JBU students is over $19,000.
This is only possible because of generous donors who support student scholarships in various ways.
SCHOLARSHIP FUND
Started in the 1980s, the John Brown University Scholarship Fund (JBUSF) provides annual need-based scholarships and work-study opportunities that help bridge the gap for students.
The annual $825,000 fundraising goal aids approximately 500 eligible students, with an average annual award of $1,750 per student.
The donations come from alumni, parents of current and past students, and friends of the university.
“We use many platforms to make these connections and meet the goals of the annual fund, including direct mail, email, texting, the semiannual phonathon, giving days and leadership giving, also known as the Founder’s Circle,” said Lanya Carson, director of advancement engagement.
The Founder’s Circle is a group of alumni and friends who commit to praying, promoting and providing at least $1,000 a year for the JBUSF. With 233 members, the Founder’s Circle accounts for over 50% of JBUSF’s total giving.
In the 2023 fiscal year, two annual giving days accounted for approximately 37% of gifts received.
Giving Tuesday is a global movement launched in 2012 as a day intended to inspire people to give and celebrate generosity. JBU participated for the first time in 2013, and 116 alumni and friends gave approximately $30,000. In 2022, that grew to 240 gifts totaling $240,000. Recently, JBU added a spring Giving Day that has averaged $62,000 in contributions for four years.
“Since 2017, the JBU Board of Trustees has provided matching funds to drive the success of JBU giving-day initiatives further,” Carson said.
A team of JBU students helps conduct a semiannual phonathon that connects with approximately 1,000 alumni, parents and friends every semester through phone calls, texts and emails.
“[It] has truly evolved into an engagement center. Student callers use this opportunity not just to request financial support for scholarships but to engage with alumni and friends for encouragement, mentorship opportunities and to pray with our community,” Carson said.
ENDOWED SCHOLARSHIPS
JBU has also experienced tremendous growth in its endowed scholarship program since introducing the first endowed scholarship, the H. Ezelle Thomas Hensley Memorial Scholarship, in 1962.
“Most colleges have endowed scholarships,” said Steve Onnen ’82, director of development. “[They] are a larger gift that comes to the university. JBU invests the gift, and the university awards scholarships annually based on the interest earned. Therefore, the scholarship can be awarded each year from here on.”
Over 330 families and organizations have supported JBU students by creating an endowed scholarship to provide scholarships to students with financial need. Donors frequently establish scholarships to honor a specific person or help students in a particular program for which the donor has an affinity. The donors work closely with university advancement staff to determine the scholarship name and criteria for student eligibility, including demographic background, major or other cocurricular interests.
In 1985, the Beverly Meador Sloan Endowed Scholarship was established by JBU alumna and former Threefold Advocate Editor Beverly Meador Sloan ’30 and her husband Raymond. Beverly had received scholarships as a JBU student and wanted to help others similarly. The Sloans endowed their scholarship through an estate gift from their trust when Beverly passed away in 2002. The scholarship supports approximately 165 JBU students each year.
Jess Barber ’23, a senior family and human services major, is one of the Beverly Meador Sloan Endowed Scholarship recipients. She is grateful that the scholarship helps her
attend JBU.
“I would not have been able to attend JBU without scholarships — both endowed and academic,” Barber said. “These scholarships have increased my gratitude for my education and the people who chose to be generous with their blessings and steward them in a way that benefits others like me.”
For the 2023-2024 academic year, JBU offered students 345 endowed scholarships totaling $3,193,420. These numbers have risen significantly since the 2001-2002 school year when 80 endowed scholarships awarded $450,170.
“JBU is in the top 5% among Christian universities in the number of endowed scholarships and the amount awarded to students,” said Jim Krall, vice president for university advancement. “We are very grateful to those that helped provide these endowments.”
This 600% increase in awardable dollars is partially due to the university’s ability to match incoming endowed scholarship dollars. These matching dollars often come from donors who want to encourage other donors to support JBU’s mission.
Onnen, who visits with donors throughout the year, says matching money helps, extending a $10,000 gift to start a new scholarship to $20,000. Many scholarship donors regularly add to their scholarships and JBU matches any gift over $10,000.
JBU appreciates every gift and recognizes the act of generosity from JBU’s donors is often a sacrificial gift.
“We celebrate donors regularly through thank-you videos and notes written by students, faculty and staff,” Carson said. “We host JBU student card parties and TAG Day (Thank a Giver Day) every other year. Founder’s Circle members and those who’ve created endowed scholarships are invited to the annual JBU Scholarship Dinner and receive personalized thank-you notes from students they support.”
Additionally, two displays in the lobby of Simmons Great Hall honor student scholarship supporters. The Faithful Givers wall lists those who have given a minimum of $10,000 or have given for 20 or more years to the JBUSF. The Endowed Scholarship wall lists the names of each endowed scholarship. Both walls are updated annually.
Student scholarships were instrumental in recruiting 2023’s record-breaking freshman class of 376 students. Transfer students and reapplicants brought the incoming student number to 429, exceeding the university’s enrollment goal
of 390.
The impact of generous donations to JBU’s scholarship programs is profound, enabling a record number of students to access an affordable, high-quality, Christ-centered education. These scholarships not only ease financial burdens but also create a legacy of opportunity and gratitude that extends far beyond the campus.
