Vashon Community Scholarship Foundation

Dear Commuter Families of the Vashon Island School District,
My name is Carla Pizzano and my son commuted from Southworth to Vashon for grades 7 thru 12. Like many of you, I wanted to find the best local public education that could give him every opportunity to learn, grow and thrive in a supportive community environment and within a system that offered and expected high quality education. Even with the early mornings, the cost of the commute, and juggling to participate in sports, school events and meetings, neither my son nor I were ever disappointed about making the choice.

When my son entered Vashon High School, I started hearing murmurings about senior scholarships; including the message that every senior receives a scholarship! This may be news to you or you may have heard the same rumor. In essence, the statement is true – every senior is eligible to receive a monetary scholarship if they meet the requirement to submit a Scholarship Notebook to the Vashon Community Scholarship Foundation (VCSF), attend the scholarship ceremony and are on track to receive a diploma.
I was not aware of the depth of this opportunity until the night I attended the scholarship ceremony and browsed the evening’s program celebrating the 107 graduating seniors by name and distributing 170 awards totaling $129,350. My heart soared when I realized that every one of the commuter students present was included in the awards as part of the entire school population without regard to their commuter or non-resident status,. It was a moving and joyous evening.
I am giving back by serving as a board member on the Vashon Community Scholarship Foundation. It’s a way I can say, Thank You, and it’s a way I can represent the commuter families. This letter to you is meant to be both informative and to encourage you to support VCSF.

The Vashon Community Scholarship Foundation was established in 1986 by a group of parents and other community members to solicit and coordinate financial support from the community for Vashon School District graduating seniors who wished to continue their education and training.  Since then, VCSF has distributed more than $1.5 million in scholarships.

Commuter students receive these scholarships as part of the Vashon community. As a commuter family, you can be actively involved in the continuing success of VCSF. Whether you have a 2014 graduating senior or you have a student anywhere within the Vashon school district, please start thinking now about becoming a long-term participant in the effort to provide these scholarships.

Join VCSF in recognizing the future potential of the 2014 graduating class and future graduating classes by making an annual donation to the Vashon Community Scholarship Foundation or by creating and sponsoring a scholarship.  There are two ways to contribute:
•    Sponsor a scholarship that honors an individual, creates a memorial to a loved one, represents a service or business organization, or promotes a profession – and you choose the selection criteria!
•    Donate to our general fund where the community selection panel will designate the award recipient(s) of your scholarship dollars.

We assure you that 100% of your charitable donation to VCSF goes directly to the tuition scholarship of the recipient.
We hope you will consider making a donation to VCSF and then join us on May 28, 2014 in the Vashon High School Gym when the community celebrates all the VHS scholarship recipients.

Respectfully,
Carla Pizzano