The Daughters of the American Revolution, a D.C.-based non-profit, works to preserve and celebrate our nation’s heritage through education, special events, and a museum.  As someone who majored in history in college (with an emphasis on American history), I thought that this would be an appropriate first scholarship to examine.

Aligned with their mission, the Daughters of the American Revolution are very active in providing scholarship opportunities for students which exceed over $150,000 per year.  Every year the DAR, awards several scholarships to qualifying high school students. While membership to the DAR is limited to females, these scholarship opportunities are available to everyone, regardless of gender (or your ancestors’ participation in the American Revolution).

Note, the DAR also lists scholarships on their website that are applicable to college students, but we are going to focus on the scholarships for high school students today.

Who is Eligible?

Interested students need to get in touch with their local DAR chapter or send a self-addressed envelope to:

Committee Services Office
Attn: Scholarships
1776 D Street, NW
Washington, DC 20006-5303

in order to obtain an application to send in.  This little bit of extra effort on part of the applicant makes this scholarship a great bet.  It is a refreshing departure from the “click and apply” simplicity of the scholarships on FastWebs where you are competing against tens of thousands of other students.

There are quite a few scholarships available for a variety of high school students.  The Dr. Aura-Lee A. and James Hobbs Pittenger American History Scholarship is a great fit for someone looking to major in American history or politics and The Lucinda Beneventi Findley History Scholarships is similarly for prospective American history majors.

Additionally the Lillian and Arthur Dunn Scholarship for sons and daughters of DAR members, would be good to consider if your mother is a DAR member.

The deadline for these three scholarships is February 15, 2011.

The Margaret Howard Hamilton Scholarship is specifically for students accepted into the Ben D. Caudle Learning Program at the University of the Ozarks.  The deadline for this scholarship is April 15, 2011.

Students who are also Native Americans also have specific scholarship opportunities with the DAR.  The Anne Trevarthen Memorial Scholarship is awarded to a student who will be attending the College of William and Mary.  The deadline is not stated for this scholarship, but it is suggested that interested students contact the William and Mary Office of Admissions.

If any of these scholarship opportunities sound interesting here are some resources to get started:

• Publications of the DAR
• DAR Scholarships FAQ
• History of the DAR