Rihanna gives back with scholarship program
Grammy-winning singer Rihanna is offering a financial boost to students struggling to figure out how to pay for a college education.
, which will be administered through聽the Clara Lionel Foundation (CLF), will be聽available to incoming freshman students working toward a bachelor鈥檚 degree and attending a four-year university in the United States for the upcoming academic year. Students must be US residents, or studying in the US internationally from Barbados, Brazil, Cuba, Haiti, Guyana, or Jamaica.
The cost of college is a significant barrier to entry for many American students and many take on a lifetime of debt just to get in the door. For low-income students who do manage to cobble together tuition through a combination of work-study programs, part-time jobs, and loans, the added pressure of financial strain adds further stress to the already rigorous demands of school. For that reason, low-income students graduate at a lower rate than their more financially comfortable peers.
Rhianna hopes her scholarship program can shift those odds for recipients.
鈥淭o be able to聽聽is actually an honor,鈥� Rihanna told USA Today. 鈥淗igher education will help provide perspective, opportunities and learning to a group of kids who really deserve it. I am thrilled to be able to do this.鈥�
The financial aid grants range from $5,000 to $50,000 per student, and can be renewed through all three subsequent years of college study or when a student鈥檚 degree program is completed.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think it鈥檚 fair that children carry the burden of financial limitations at such a young age,鈥� Rihanna said in .
鈥淚t might not literally be putting someone up on stage, but just giving them the outlet to do something they might love, keep them focused on positive things,鈥� she said.
Rihanna grew up in Barbados and never completed high school, instead focusing on her performing career which she rode to international prominence.
The new scholarship fund is not the first philanthropic work by the music star, who has sold more than 185 million records worldwide, and has been recognized with eight Grammy awards. Robyn 鈥淩ihanna鈥� Fenty established CLF in 2012 as an organization to improve communities around the globe, and so far has established an oncology and nuclear medicine treatment center as well as granting funds to more than 100 schools in Barbados.
She has also worked to raise awareness for HIV/AIDS and has to relief programs such as Hurricane Sandy and Typhoon Haiyan.
Rihanna is far from the only charitable celebrity, though, and dozens more offer scholarships to students in need as well. Fellow musicians Tony Bennett, Will.i.am, and Quincy Jones 聽to qualifying students, as well as actors Alec Baldwin, Kirk Douglas, Kevin Spacey, and more.
Athletes from Derek Jeter to LeBron James and college payment assistance; Mr. James last year announced in Ohio's Akron Public Schools system who stay involved with LeBron James Family Foundation mentorship programming through high school.
