Scholarships & Experiential Learning
Scholarship funds provide tuition assistance to graduating seniors and returning college students. These funds support students from diverse backgrounds and with varying college and career paths, including students who are low-incoming, pursuing technical certification or apprenticeship training or first-generation college attendees.
Experiential learning funds offer educational travel for current high school students, particularly those interested in history or conservation.
If you’re a student with a question about scholarships or experiential learning opportunities or assistance with applications, email Scholarships or call 970-925-9300.
| Scholarships
Fast Forward
Established in 2014 by Paul D. Bushong, Jr.
Criteria: Pursuing technical or vocational education
Awards: Two-year scholarships for 10-20 students per year, up to $10,000 each
Schools: Aspen, Basalt, Bridges, Roaring Fork, Glenwood Springs, Yampah Mountain, Coal Ridge, Rifle, and Grand Valley
Braden Q. Bruington Basalt High
Established in 2016 by the family of Braden Bruington
Criteria: Strong academic record and demonstrating financial need
Awards: 1 per year, $2,000
Schools: Basalt
John Gold PreCollegiate Program
Established in 2006 by Barbara and John Gold
Criteria: Roaring Fork PreCollegiate graduates entering and continuing college
Awards: 50 – 100 per year, $500 – $1,500 each
Schools: Basalt, Roaring Fork, and Glenwood Springs
Jerome Hatem Memorial
Established in 2019 by friends and family of Jerome Hatem
Criteria: Participant in a junior-level rugby program in the Roaring Fork Valley
Awards: 1 award per year for $2,000, and renewable in college for $1,000 per year
Schools: Aspen, Basalt, Bridges, Roaring Fork, Glenwood Springs, Yampah, Coal Ridge, and Rifle
Tom Peirce & Melanie Peirce Brown Memorial
Established in 2003 by the family of Tom and Melanie Peirce
Criteria: Students of exceptional promise exhibiting intellectual talents, a sense of ethics, and powers of exploration.
Awards: 2 per year
Schools: Aspen and Basalt
Aaron Roberts-Gray Memorial
Established in 2015 by the family of Aaron Roberts-Gray
Criteria: Male student
Awards: One per year, $2,000 renewable
Schools: Glenwood Springs
Harley Baldwin Memorial
Established in 2005 by ACF in memory of Harley Baldwin
Criteria: First-generation and demonstrating financial need
Awards: Five or more per year, $1,000 to $5,000 each
Schools: Aspen, Basalt, Roaring Fork and Glenwood Springs
Bailey Shaw ' 24 Scholarship for Theater Arts
Established in 2025 by the family and friends of Bailey Shaw.
Criteria: Student involved in theater arts
Awards: One per year
Schools: Aspen
ACF Scholarship Portal & 2025 Applications
Scholarship applications are closed for 2025. The process will open in January 2026 for the high school graduating class of 2026.
To access our scholarship system – go to the ACF Scholarship Application. Create New Account and register your scholarship account with ACF. You will complete a Universal Application before you submit your scholarship forms to the specific scholarship opportunities available.
Contact Scholarships@AspenCommunityFoundation.org or call 970-925-9300 with any questions.
Scholarship Timeline
Available
January 6, 2025
Deadline
February 21, 2025
Interviews and Selections
March – April 2025
Announcements
April – May 2025
Proof of Enrollment
July- August 2025
Scholarship Awards Distributed
August – September 2025
| Experiential Learning
The BettyFlies Foundation Flight School Scholarship
Have you dreamed of a career in aviation? The BettyFlies Foundation Flight School Scholarship can help you take off! Open to high school students, the scholarship is intended to cover aircraft and flight instructor training costs up to your Private Pilot check ride.
This scholarship opportunity is on hiatus for 2025.
Normandy & WWII Education
Established in 2016 by Paul D. Bushong, Jr. to promote understanding of the significance of Normandy and its place in World War II. Scholarship recipients will participate in an 11-day education trip to New Orleans and France through the National WWII Museum’s Normandy Academy. 2025 tour date options are: June 25th – July 5th or July 1st – 11th, 2025
The accepted students will receive a $4,595 scholarship to attend the Normandy Academy 2025. Students will be responsible for paying $1,200 to cover their portion of the total tuition cost ($5,795). This tuition covers all meals, airfare, transportation, lodging and museum admissions during the 11-day tour.
Criteria: Current Sophomores or Juniors
Schools: Basalt, Roaring Fork, Glenwood Springs, Bridges, Yampah Mountain, Coal Ridge and Rifle
Application Instructions:
- Deadline to apply is Fri., January 24, 2025.
- Go to the National WWII Museum’s website to apply: The National WWII Museum Submission Manager
- Find “Normandy Academy High School 2025” and click submit to begin your registration and application form. Answer all required questions.
- Email Scholarships@AspenCommunityFoundation.org to inform ACF that you are applying to the Normandy scholarship via the museum’s website. Or reach out with any questions.
- Awards will be announced by late February. Tuition payment will be due to ACF in March.
McBride African Internship
Established in 2014 by Laurie and John McBride to promote wildlife and conservation education through two-week internships at Lewa Wildlife Conservancy in Kenya. In 2025, the dates are planned for July 23rd – August 6th, 2025, but this date may change a day or two in either direction.
McBride African Internship application is open now. The application deadline is Friday, January 10, 2025. Contact garland.aaron@gmail.com or call 970-309-8664 with any questions.
Criteria: Strong interest in conservation
Awards: 8 students per year
Schools: Aspen, Basalt, Bridges, Roaring Fork, Glenwood Springs, and Yampah
Visit the McBride African Internship website for more information
The Founders Award at (HS)2, a program of Colorado Rocky Mountain School
High School High Scholar is a place to learn, grow, connect, and prepare for college with peers from around the country. (HS)2 scholars come to the Colorado Rocky Mountain School campus, in Carbondale, CO, for five weeks for three summers to live and learn in an inspiring mountain setting.
Created in 2024 in honor of devoted (HS)2 Founders, Mollie and Garland Lasater, the “Founders Award” is presented to a graduate who embodies the program values of Care, Curiosity, Persistence, and Academic Excellence.
Eligible students can click here to access the 2025 application form for the 2025 Founders Award
Contact Scholarships@AspenCommunityFoundation.org or call 970-925-9300 if you are interested in experiential learning scholarship opportunities.
Stephanie Gianneschi
Director of Philanthropic Services
| Interested in establishing a scholarship?
For information about establishing a scholarship or experiential learning fund or supporting an existing fund at Aspen Community Foundation, please contact Stephanie Gianneschi, Director of Philanthropic Services, at (970) 925-9300 ext. 219 or via email.
