The Vonne Group’s mission is to dramatically increase the number of African-American females in hospitality executive and ownership levels. The goal of The Elizabeth Swans Smith Emerging Pineapple Professional Scholarship is to help remove the financial barriers preventing many African-American students from reaching this important milestone.
Scholarship
Elizabeth Swans Smith
The Elizabeth Swans Smith Emerging Pineapple Professional Scholarship is an award designed to support African-American female students majoring
and minoring in hospitality administration. Founded by Davonne Reaves, the scholarship was created in honor of her late grandmother Elizabeth Swans Smith who introduced the hospitality guru to the industry.
FAQs
The Elizabeth Swans Smith Emerging Pineapple Professional Scholarship will support African-American Female graduates who meet eligibility requirements and need assistance paying for postsecondary education.
We fund students pursuing their technical, associate’s, or bachelor’s credentials or graduate degrees. The Elizabeth Swans Smith Emerging Professional Scholarship will not provide scholarships for more than one associate’s or bachelor’s degree.
An eligible college/university is an accredited, nonprofit private, or public college or technical program.
The Elizabeth Swans Smith Emerging Pineapple Professional Scholarship awards can be used for any part of the cost of attendance at accredited, nonprofit, or public colleges/universities, in- and out-of-state. Cost of attendance (COA) includes tuition, fees, room, board, and allowances for books, travel, and other fees. Visit your college’s website to find the COA for your college.
ABOUT THE SCHOLARSHIP
Elizabeth Swans Smith was born 12th out of 19 children to the late Masco and Vera Swans in Ellaville, GA. The highest education she achieved was an eighth-grade education due to the segregation of schools in her small town of Ellaville, GA. She worked for 32 years as a nursing assistant for the state hospital. Despite the lack of receiving a formal education, all of her children and grandchildren received bachelor’s degrees, while both daughters received their master’s degrees.
To pay homage to her grandma’s life and the anniversary of her homegoing, Davonne Reaves decided to create a scholarship fund to award an African-American female majoring or minoring in a hospitality-related field. Because it was her grandma who led her to the field of working in the hospitality industry.
SCHOLARSHIP ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
To be eligible for The Elizabeth Swans Smith Emerging Pineapple Professional, you must:
- Undergraduate and graduate student majoring or minoring in hospitality
- Enrolled in an eligible college/university or technical program
- Have cumulative, weighted GPA of at least 2.5
- Scholars enrolling in a technical school or associate degree program (2-year school) are eligible to apply
KEY DATES
- Scholarship Application Opens on November 8th, 2021
- Scholarship Application Closes on December 31st, 2021
- Final Scholarship Awards Announced – Late January 2022
AWARD AMOUNT
- $1,000
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