For DonorsFor Applicants

Greer Innovation, A Scholarship For Creatives

Funded by
user profile avatar
Rachel Greer
$1,762
2 winners, $881 each
Awarded
Application Deadline
Apr 11, 2024
Winners Announced
May 11, 2024
Education Level
High School, Undergraduate
1
Contribution
Eligibility Requirements
GPA:
2.7 or higher
Field of Study:
Creative business or entrepreneurial degree
Education Level:
High School senior or two or four-year undergraduate student
State:
Wisconsin or Tennessee

Space for creatives is often limited, with few resources available for creative minds.

Bringing creativity into more sectors is key to driving innovation and bringing about fresh products, solutions, and ideas. Even in fields such as business or entrepreneurship, where creativity isn’t traditionally thought of as a priority, investing in the creative minds of the next generation can yield incredible results.

This scholarship seeks to support undergraduate students who are bringing creativity to their pursuit of higher education.

Any high school senior or two or four-year undergraduate student in Wisconsin who is pursuing a creative business or entrepreneurial degree and has at least a 2.7 GPA may apply for this scholarship.

To apply, tell us what you’ve learned from the books you’ve read, how your experience with creativity has impacted your beliefs, relationships, and career goals, how you plan to make an innovative contribution to the world, and why you’re passionate about creativity.

Selection Criteria:
Ambition, Drive, Passion
Published December 17, 2023
Essay Topic

How has your experience with creativity influenced your beliefs, relationships, and career aspirations? Please tell us a bit about yourself and how you plan to make an innovative impact on the world through your creative talent. Where did you attend school and do you feel your school could use more innovation or creativity to increase engagement with learning?

400–600 words

Winning Applications

Richard Halamka
Pulaski High SchoolMILWAUKEE, WI
I always wanted some security within my family, and so I dreamt of life, such as that. Thinking of everything I could’ve done, making my own business being a gazillion air. Now I still hold onto those beliefs. I wish to make a big change in the world. I’ll legacy to follow for my children and my children’s children after that. I want to be able to secure my Legacy in this world. So to achieve that I wish to make as much money as possible. And how do you do that? Well, it’s a simple as being creative. Being able to come up with different ways to advertise, and to put yourself out into the world. So I plan to become a icon among young adults like me, for you see I never attended a private fancy school, but in the gutters of Milwaukee, where there’s barely any resources for the teachers to teach. And the kids they are always wanting something excluding college effort. Lacking the creativity to move on to a career or bright future ahead. I am just about to graduate from Casimir Pulaski high school. I’ve been here long enough to grow as a human being, and as into a young adult. I have learned much by watching my peers. To be different. To be seen. And to be a leader. I started a Theater Club here. And my god it was well worth it. Being able to entertain express my own creativity has been something very precious to me. I will carry this for the rest of my life no matter where I go. We even did a little town show called Pulaski got talent. You can find some performances on YouTube. And do you wanna know how this influenced me. Well, it is maybe into a better person all together. There is nothing more Frightening than trying lead, I made a plethora of the mistakes and bad decisions. However, I have learned from each and everyone and now that I’m older I know exactly what to do. No matter how I look at it. This has been the best year of my high school career, as a student, as a president of a club, and as a human being. Everyone deserves it needs to be kind to one another for things to run smoothly. I just hope I can show the people the way of empathy.
Maxwell Allen
Beloit Memorial High SchoolBELOIT, WI
My hopes and dreams lie within an entrepreneurial spirit, with sights on becoming a successful business owner and operator. I will achieve this goal through my creative talents! To start, academically, I maintained a consistent 4.0 GPA amidst challenging AP courses, mental fatigue, the struggles of online schooling due to COVID, and sports-related injuries that delayed my learning. I believe that I was able to do this through the use of creativity. I rose to these challenges and adversity by being different. I've used a creative lens to get me to the highest points. I've always tried to think outside the box, to set me apart from others. My creative path began at home. Both of my parents are extremely creative and they live their lives in a way that boosts others, by finding ways to cater to the various strengths of the individuals around them. Their creativity seems to go hand in hand with giving. This was instilled in me from an early age. I spent most of my elementary/intermediate school years competing annually for Destination Imagination, Inc. Our schools would have try-outs for creativity teams that would compete at the district, regional, and state level. Each year I worked to problem solve with a project based program that taught me to be an innovative problem solver. Using STEAM, we would collaborate, think outside the box and create unique solutions in a competition. My team won for the state of Wisconsin for 3 years, AND we went on to the global competition where we competed creativity tasks against people from 22 other countries. I know that I will find success as a developer, organizer, and business owner. It's in my bones, part of my DNA make-up. I learned from a very early age that success takes drive, determination, perseverance, and understanding adversity. My father didn't graduate from college. He worked his way up the food chain, and became a franchisee of two fast food locations. I learned through his hard work and dedication, that some ideas fail, but to try again...to never stop trying. Creativity is the unique way for finding solutions, so that you can try again, with finally, a successful outcome. I want to build, imagine, and make. My mom is a teacher. Through her creativity, she brought the classroom to life and made learning so much fun. Every student was engaged and excited to learn. Beyond personal triumphs and my own inner bubble, I recognized the power of extending a helping hand to others navigating their own challenges while being a student in her classroom. This realization changed my perspective and had me step out of being self-centered and make a commitment to community engagement, those around me. I am creative in every sense of the word, as in every single area of my life I have to use creativity in my various roles; work=shift leader, sports=captain of my varsity teams, orchestra=first chair trumpet, & even at home=helping my younger brother. I plan to take the innate creativity in me, and begin to positively change our community. I will be looking outside of myself to make a difference in our world. It's through just these few listed reasons that I know I will be successful in my pursuit of an entrepreneurial career, because I will do it creatively.

FAQ

When is the scholarship application deadline?

The application deadline is Apr 11, 2024. Winners will be announced on May 11, 2024.