Provided by the National Italian American Foundation
Vincent Chapa of Oak Park has received the NIAF Filomena C. Peloro Scholarship. Chapa attends American University and is majoring in international studies.
The National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) is a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., and dedicated to preserving the heritage of Italian Americans. Their scholarship program has grown from four scholarships of $250 each to nearly 100 annual scholarships that range from $2,000 to $15,000 each in the humanities, medicine, business, engineering, music, Italian language and culture and other specialized fields.
Scholarship winners are selected based on academic merit and are academically outstanding, with an average GPA of 3.95. The average scholarship in the United States was more than $4,000.
In addition to NIAF’s scholarship program, last year NIAF offered assistance to Italy’s earthquake-stricken region of Abruzzo and Lago del Bosco, an Italian language and cultural immersion camp in the U.S. NIAF also sent college students to Italy’s Campania and Umbria regions to participate in the Ambassador Peter F. Secchia Voyage of Discovery program, an educational and cultural initiative, and funded university grants to Italian clubs and cultural and educational grants.
To apply online for a 2011-2012 NIAF scholarship, visit www.niaf.org/scholarships. The application deadline is March 4, 2011.