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OUR STORY
CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF IMPACT
For twenty years, The Shawn Carter Foundation has been committed to bridging the opportunity gap that exists across the education system.
We firmly believe that nothing should prevent any individual from reaching their highest potential.
Since its inception, The Foundation has provided college scholarships for young people who have talent and drive but due to mitigating circumstances their grade point averages fall below the minimum to qualify for support at other foundations and institutions.
The students who receive support from the Shawn Carter Foundation are high school and college-age students facing incredible difficulties that distract them from functioning in school.
They represent an array of backgrounds: some come from single parent households and some are single parents themselves, some have grown in the foster care system or have faced homelessness, many are raising younger siblings or providing care for a family member with mental or physical health challenges, some have been victims of abuse, and the majority come from families that are simply trying to make ends meet due to poverty.
These circumstances should not prevent students who want to go to college, pursue their dreams, make a better life for themselves, and give back to their communities. It is the Shawn Carter Foundation’s responsibility and honor to open the doors of education, travel, enlightenment and experiences to those that may never have thought it possible.
Everyone possesses a genius level talent and The Shawn Carter Foundation’s mission is to give a platform to achieve greatness.
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Carmin W.
Pennsylvania State University
Ph.D. Student
University of New Orleans, 2020
MFA, Creative Writing Poetry
Howard University, 2018
BA, English
"I was a young black overachieving student, who grew up in impoverished and under-resourced black communities and school systems my entire life… [In 2018] I graduated as a first-generation college student and became an alumna of Howard University. More than anything that SCF has provided me, I send thank yous to all the staff that has lifted me up in more ways than I can repay."
Highlights Over The Years
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“The value of education is something that I have understood since a very young age. Neither of my parents had an opportunity to attend college and faced many struggles in their personal and professional lives because of this. My family has made many sacrifices to allow me to focus on my education throughout primary and secondary school. I now have an opportunity to become the first person in my family to attend college, though I’m in need of financial assistance to realize what has been a long-term goal for me and a dream for my parents. As an SCF scholar, I will continue to apply the same diligence to my collegiate studies as I have to this point, making education and service to others my top priority.”
The Shawn Carter Foundation Scholarship has helped me throughout my first and second semester of architecture school. I was grateful enough to receive it which helped alleviate many financial issues such as studio materials and tuition. I truly witnessed the benefit of receiving this scholarship this semester since my project dealt with full scale construction and I needed to buy wood in order to create models and bring forth ideas.
