<p>Back before the OP was born, Jimmy Carter told me that life is not fair.</p>
<p>The committee has the right to select whom it wants. Absolutely correct. But the committee should not tell the world that it gives scholarships based on merit then awards them on the basis of totally different criteria. </p>
<p>I contribute to scholarship funds. And I'd like to know that the monies I contribute go to the goals for which they are raised. I've also served on scholarship committees. you can say I feel strongly about how scholarships are awarded. I've never considered having my kids apply for scholarships, or to colleges that give merit money, although I'm morally certain they could have gotten quite a bit of merit money. That is not the reason I've served on scholarship committee, and I'm not kvetching on their behalf. I just think the GC's modus operandi was not appropriate and the OP should let it be known so that the GC does not use it again in regard to another student who might really welcome the money.</p>
<p>Tokenadult: Jimmy Carter has spent much of his post-presidential life trying to make life fairer through Habitat for Humanity and the Carter Center. I applaud him.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Back before the OP was born, Jimmy Carter told me that life is not fair.
[/quote]
I don't know what Jimmy Carter said, but I've noticed that on these boards it is always the people who already have the biggest piece of pie who scream the loudest about "unfairness" when the rest of the pie is distributed to others.</p>
<p>Since I have been making the most noise, I will note that I purposely did not push either of my kids to apply for merit scholarships which I am morally certain they would have gotten precisely because I know that, owing to life's unfairness, we have the means to pay full fare.
I am very happy that "the rest of the pie is distributed to others" since that rest is made somewhat bigger thanks to our not trying to claim a piece of it. I hope that it is distributed fairly, according to stated criteria. They need not be my own; but they should certainly be those publicized by the people who are in charge of the distribution.</p>
<p>
[quote]
the committee should not tell the world that it gives scholarships based on merit then awards them on the basis of totally different criteria.
[/quote]
We have absolutely no evidence that the students who won the local scholarships weren't deemed to be more meritorious.</p>
<p>The OP said these are service clubs. When a service club gives a scholarship, if they are not looking at need, they are almost always looking at service, favoring those who have given back to their community. That's part of the mission of the club. So the fact that OP was admitted to Harvard is not evidence of "merit" in the context of winning local scholarships. We have no information at all as to that.</p>
<p>No we don't. And I have said that there is no reason to believe that the OP would have received the scholarship had the GC not made that comment. But we do know that the GC made that comment, and I stand by my contention that it was not appropriate as an indication of the student's financial needs/resources. That is what bothers me. Not the fact that the student did not receive the scholarship.</p>
<p>We also have only third or fourth hand knowledge of the alleged reason that the OP didn't get the scholarship. After all, a friend on the committee told the OP's dad what the GC said. For all we know, the friend wasn't even the person who talked to the GC. In an effort to be tactful, the friend also may have have misrepresented the reason why the OP wasn't chosen.</p>
<p>Sheer speculation. The OP knows more than we do. That much is certain. But at the same time, posters speculate on the basis of the information provided by the OP while discounting the OP's reliability. Hmmmm....</p>
<p>There was absolutely no reason for the acquaintance to disclose why the OP did not get the scholarship. Anybody who has served on a scholarship committee knows how to be sympathetic without divulging the reason for the lack of success. heck, admissions offices have the art of the gentle letdown pat: " Largest number of applicants in history, 95% of whom were fully qualified, yadda, yadda, yadda." The acquaintance must have thought that the GC's action had some bearing on the outcome. Why else to disclose it? But, and I repeat myself, even if it did not, the GC's action was not appropriate. And the GC should be made aware of it so that some other students are not affected by the GC's take on what should or should not be assumed.</p>
<p>We have no clue what the GC said. We know that the dad's friend, on the scholarship committee, knew from the GC that the OP is going to Harvard and that Harvard has a big endowment. For all we know, someone on the committee called the GC and asked specific questions, specifically to ascertain relative need. </p>
<p>Just because a scholarship does not have "need" as a stated criteria doesn't mean that the committee won't consider relative need in making a selection among deserving candidates. What it means is that the scholarship does not require candidates to submit financial information. But the committee can consider any and all factors it considers relevant.</p>
<p>"But, and I repeat myself, even if it did not, the GC's action was not appropriate. And the GC should be made aware of it so that some other students are not affected by the GC's take on what should or should not be assumed."</p>
<p>We don't know what the GC did. We have only 3rd or 4th hand knowledge about what the GC said.</p>
<p>Harvard's new financial aid policies also have been widely publicized including in the national press, so a committee member even may have been who made the statement about Harvard's endowment. </p>
<p>"The acquaintance must have thought that the GC's action had some bearing on the outcome. Why else to disclose it? "</p>
<p>The acquaintance also could have been wrong or have been trying to be tactful about why the student wasn't picked. He may have been nervous about encountering the father after turning down the father's son for a scholarship. Some people when they get nervous babble and anything can come out of their mouths including things that are not quite true.</p>
<p>"the GC's action was not appropriate. And the GC should be made aware of it so that some other students are not affected by the GC's take on what should or should not be assumed"</p>
<p>If the student or his parents go to the GC assuming that the GC did something inappropriate they may end up learning that the hearsay they heard was completely wrong, and the student and his parents may end up looking very foolish. </p>
<p>If they do approach the GC, I hope they do so in a tactful way in case what they think the GC did isn't what happened.</p>
<p>Well, of course, one hopes that they will be tactful in approaching the GC! Just as one hopes that the OP thanked the GC and teachers for writings recs, etc... And it will be in a good cause, since it's meant to help future students.</p>
<p>But you keep on speculating more wildly all the time. Now, it's the acquaintance babbling things that are not true out of sheer nervousness. It's better than a movie script.</p>
<p>My speculation is based on the OP's original post, which indicates that the OP and his parents are angry about the GC's words, which the OP and parents seem to feel sure have been reported accurately. Sure doesn't sound like the parents are planning to approach the GCs with open minds.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, it does seem to me that the acquaintance was babbling a heckuva lot. From what's in the original post, it's possible that the scholarship winners' names haven't even been made public yet. If the info were public, I'd think that the OP's father would have heard it before since he's a member of the service club that awarded the scholarship.</p>
<p>The original post: "A friend of my Dad's who is on the scholarship committee for the service club they both belong to mentioned casually a couple weeks ago who was selected to receive the club's scholarships (not me). The friend then said that the high school guidance counselors had told the committee that I did not "need" any money since I was attending an Ivy college with a big endowment....</p>
<p>My parents are mad and want to say something to the guidance counselors (who do not know our income and never saw my financial aid award letter). "</p>
<p>IMO there's some awful advice being tossed around .</p>
<p>Forget about it. Say nothing to anyone, especially the GC. Move forward. There is no upside to this.</p>
<p>I think that you're right, it isn't fair what happened. So be it. Complaining would not be prudent, will only make you look bad, and will achieve absolutely nothing.</p>
<p>I have not suggested that the OP complain. Nor have I suggested that the parents approach the GC in high dudgeon. I have suggested that the OP's parents make the GC aware that what the GC did was inappropriate. The student is about to graduate; i would not worry about looking bad (unless there is a sibling at the school still). One hopes that some other student will not be treated in the same way--unfairly.</p>
<p>I agree that the acquaintance was babbling. But if it weren't for leaks, an awful lot of horrible stuff would not see the light of day.</p>
<p>So, to recap: the acquaintance was on the scholarship committee. Unless the acquaintance was under the influence while recounting the story, one can assume that the acquaintance reported accurately what the GC had said to the committee. </p>
<p>Now, I will speculate that the acquaintance thought that what the GCs said had some bearing on the scholarship committee's decision. It's less of a stretch than a lot of other bits of speculation that have been posted.</p>
<p>"Unless the acquaintance was under the influence while recounting the story, one can assume that the acquaintance reported accurately what the GC had said to the committee. "</p>
<p>Having been in situations in which I was unfairly blasted by a supervisor and students on hearsay info that totally distorted some things I said, I would reserve judgment until hearing the GCs' side of the story. </p>
<p>Having served on scholarship and similar committees, I would not be surprised if every member of the committee had a different viewpoint of how the committee made its decision. </p>
<p>I think the OP should move on with his life while enjoying his college admissions. If he or his parents approach the GCs, keeping an open mind would be important.</p>
<p>I agree that it's best to not accept hearsay as the gospel truth-it's easy to omit and/or embellish in a 3rd hand story.</p>
<p>Still, I don't think it's unreasonable for a parent to generally inquire to the head of guidance, perhaps, about what, if any, additional info is given to a scholarship committee by the GC about an applicant other than the info that is provided by the applicant. I wouldn't be accusatory or specific about the situation, but merely curious. But, if things are not being handled properly, then the dept. should have the opportunity to set things right for the future.</p>
<p>At my D's school, the GC's only know what you tell them. They do not keep track of financial aid grants, but they do want to know if you received merit aid or other scholarships from colleges or other outlets. The policy here is for GC's to recommend students for community scholarships if they meet the general academic/service, etc. criteria. If a scholarship is need-based, it is up to the students to determine whether they qualify. This ensures, for the most part, that people's personal business is kept private. I think it's a pretty good policy.</p>
<p>
[quote]
To me, the bottom line is that the people offering the scholarships are doing a favor, and can use whatever criteria they want to select the winners. Those who have the gold can make the rules. They are under no obligation at all to let the world know the details about their priorities in selecting the winners.
[/quote]
You are completely missing the point. It is the GC who is not following the rules if she is bringing need into the equation. I have been on committees to set up local scholarships, but have never been involved in the student selection. If those who set up scholarships & then continue to accept donations for those scholarhip funds are not presenting the details about the selection criteria, that is simply wrong. If the rules aren't followed, then the original donors, current donors, and students who diligently applied under a specific set of rules have been duped. And when I spoke of worthy kids possibly losing out, I was referring specifically to losing the local scholarships because of overreaching & erroneous assumptions by a GC. Of ourse not every worthy student gains schoalsrhip money. But this GC is not follwong the specific guidelines issued by the scholarship rules.</p>
<p>
[quote]
And it was probably manifestly "fair" because the other students who were considered were so much worse off than that particular student.
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Pure speculation. In fact, the OP states that a family earning more $$ than his won the scholarship.</p>
<p>
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Maybe to a Harvard admit, "fair" means "me first"
[/quote]
I don't see how you are coming to this conclusion. Fair means following the rules. If merit only scholarships are being handed out at this h.s., and the only ivy league admit is blocked from every single one, doesn't that raise suspicion? And after hearing the GC comment, do you feel that ignoring the stated criteria for an award, and applying one's own, is "fair?" These awards are already subjective, often including requirements such as "good character" and "service to the community." I think it is an enormous waste of kids' time if they are applying in good faith to scholarships that state clearly the requirements, but are awarded on an entirely different basis.</p>
<p>"If merit only scholarships are being handed out at this h.s., and the only ivy league admit is blocked from every single one, doesn't that raise suspicion? "</p>
<p>No. If you're referring to the OP, he never said he was the only Ivy admitted student at his school.</p>
<p>In addition, there are many highly qualified students who don't bother to apply to Ivies. There also are highly qualified students who apply, but aren't accepted to Ivies.</p>
<p>In addition, we have no idea what kinds of merit the scholarship committees were looking for. Leadership? Community service? Character? GPA? Some combination of grades/leadership/character/service?</p>
<p>The OP may be, for instance, a NHS officer and competitive math team winner with a 4.0 and 2380 SAT when, meanwhile, the committee's idea of merit is a B+ gpa, football captain, SGA president headed for flagship U, or perhaps the committee would prefer a NHS member who has 1,000 hours of community service.</p>
<p>"Pure speculation. In fact, the OP states that a family earning more $$ than his won the scholarship."</p>
<p>And the OP is intimately familiar with another family's finances through something other than speculation?</p>
<p>"I have been on committees to set up local scholarships, but have never been involved in the student selection. If those who set up scholarships & then continue to accept donations for those scholarhip funds are not presenting the details about the selection criteria, that is simply wrong."</p>
<p>The committee can make its decision by whatever method they choose. </p>
<p>In the case of the OP, I wonder if he thought he was a lock for the scholarship because not only was he a HPY accepted student, but also his dad belonged to the organization offering the scholarship.</p>
<p>The OP's apparent surprise and angst over not getting that scholarship surprises me. I doubt that there were many scholarships offered at his school, and there may have been many worthy applicants.</p>
<p>I also notice this sentence in the original post, which leads me to think that the OP may have gotten some kind of scholarship.
"As other local scholarships have been announced, I have been almost completely shut out."</p>
<p>NSM - as you well know, sitting on scholarship committees is a thankless job. Often the criteria for awarding a scholarship is too broad or too specific. Who knows for sure why the OP didn't receive the award, but as you said H/Y/P have boasted about how generous they will be in terms of FA so the general impression is that most kids won't be paying much. </p>
<p>Depending on where the recipient is attending school, even if parents make more money it is very possible they will be paying more. </p>
<p>To the OP - daughter is attending one of the big three. With the new FA, WE contacted a local organization that had awarded my D a small, renewable scholarship and told them that we felt with the package we received, we would prefer they give her money to a student who might need it more than our family. </p>
<p>You have been incredibly blessed, let it go and look forward to next year.</p>
<p>I do agree with NSM. It is a bit presumptous to assume that because your family has money, they can afford all of it. But, you're paying very little even compared to state schools. Just look for other scholarships. If you could get into Harvard, I'm sure you can get an even better scholarship!</p>