These Harlem tiny tots don’t need a lengthy resume and outstanding GPA to receive a college scholarship.
When Gail Davis, owner of of Round The Clock Nursery, saw her first class of toddlers graduate in the early 2000s, it was a dream come true, she told DNA Info, but she still wanted a way to keep tabs on them. Davis, who moved to New York from Trinidad in 1970, met with a financial advisor in 2005 and started a scholarship program two years later.
Davis follows each child’s growth from the day they arrive at daycare to the time they leave through reports from members of the staff and each year chooses around 9 students to each receive $10,000 college scholarships. Davis said the scholarship money is raised through fundraising and sometimes from her own pocket.
Students with exceptional attendance, parent participation, and overall cooperation are among those selected. Parents have to sign an agreement agreeing to the requirements, including certain essays throughout the child’s academic career along with community service hours for both the parents and child.
“Initially there were no requirements because I just wanted to follow my kids,” Davis said, according to DNA Info. “But now we want to make sure that this parent is interested in academics for the child and that they support the child.”
The scholarship is gifted at daycare graduation and can only be accessed after high school graduation to be used toward college education.
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