Virtual Scholarship for High School Seniors
F&M Bank is excited to partner with the Virginia Bankers Association Education Foundation (VBA) to offer local seniors a unique, virtual scholarship opportunity called Bank Day. The third Tuesday in March was declared Bank Day by the Virginia General Assembly in 1991.
Through this program, high school seniors learn about banking, financial services, career opportunities and the vital role banks play in their communities. From their experience, the students are required to write an essay. Fourteen scholarships will be awarded on the basis of the essays.
How will the virtual scholarship work?
Due to the pandemic, Bank Day will be completely virtual and centralized with content provided from the VBA. Students will have access to a VBA-created Bank Day resource webpage over a three-week window from March 15-April 2, 2021. This resource page will house all relevant information that students will need to research in order to complete their essay for a chance to win college scholarships. As a virtual host, F&M Bank will also be providing supplemental information about ways we support our community.
How much scholarship money is available?
We are excited to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Bank Day in 2021! In recognition of this milestone, a total of $29,000 will be awarded to twelve students across the Commonwealth.
- Six honorable mention winners, each winning a $1,000 scholarship.
- Six regional winners, each winning a $2,500 scholarship.
- One of the regional winners will be named the statewide runner-up winner, earning an extra $3,000 scholarship for a total of $5,500 in college scholarships!
- One of the regional winners will also be named the statewide winner, earning an extra $5,000 scholarship for a total of $7,500 in college scholarships!
Why should students participate?
Hear from Emily Carder, the 2020 Bank Day statewide winner, about the benefits of participating in this program in her video testimonial.
Where can I find more information?
For more detailed information regarding the scholarship program or essay guidelines, please download the below resources.
In order to participate, students must be currently enrolled as seniors in a Virginia high school with cumulative GPAs of 3.0 or higher. Interested students must register online by March 5th through the VBA.
In March, students will be contacted directly by the VBA with more information about the program and a link to access the student resource webpage.