A local nonprofit dedicated to helping mothers continue their education received a grant this month.
Charlotte-based ANSWER Scholarships received a $100,000 grant from the Principal Foundation, a global nonprofit focused on helping communities achieve financial security.
Each year, the nonprofit awards 25 mothers with a $5,500 scholarship for four-year programs or $2,750 for two-year programs. ANSWER Scholarship Founder and Executive Director Susan Andersen said scholarships are renewable for up to four years.
The scholarship is open to single or married mothers aged 25 or older raising Pre-K through 12th-grade children in Mecklenburg or surrounding counties. Applicants must attend school full-time in one of those counties and maintain a 2.5 grade point average.
The organization plans to use the grant to upgrade its donor management software, increase community awareness and attract potential applicants.
Why it matters: Seventy percent of the nonprofit’s most recent graduating class was Black.
Andersen told QCity Metro the program has a 91% graduation rate, nearly double the national average for non-traditional students.
The program could help the children of the participants, Andersen said.
Andersen said that sixty percent of the program’s scholars said that their children’s behavior and grades also improved.
“These children are watching mom. They’re sitting around the kitchen table doing homework together, and they’re watching their mom succeed,” Andersen said. “It gives the child the incentive to work hard themselves.”
‘Pay it forward’
Growing up, Andersen said her family emphasized the value of higher education, but cost was still a barrier.
“I always knew I was going to attend [college],” Andersen said. “But unfortunately, when it came time for me to graduate high school, the money wasn’t there for me to go, and I just had to figure out how to make that happen.”
In the 1980s, a local organization gave Andersen a partial scholarship to attend UNC Charlotte, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in business. She also had a job and a work-study position to afford tuition.
“I never forgot their generosity,” Andersen said. “And as a young college graduate, I made a vow myself that one day, somehow, I would pay it forward. Over 20 years later, I was able to finally make good on that promise.”
Andersen said after a successful career in Mary Kay Cosmetics, her “passion was to help moms.”
“I discovered that when women don’t have an education, it’s difficult to support the family financially,” Andersen said. “It dawned on me one day that if we could educate a mom, you will also impact and educate the children.”
In 2006, Andersen founded ANSWER Scholarship. Since then, she said, it has awarded over $823,000 in scholarships.
Andersen said the organization’s short-term goal is to increase the program to 30 scholars and, in the long term, expand to other areas around North Carolina.
A ‘key factor’ of success
The program also provides participants with one-on-one mentoring.
Andersen said the women in the program “do significantly better with a mentor” by providing “a safety net” and support.
“Many of our scholars are first-generation college students, and they’re navigating their college life on their own without a lot of support from folks at home,” Andersen said. “The mentoring program is the key factor of our success.”
Participants also receive professional development. Several times a year, participants must attend a four-hour workshop at Central Piedmont Community College on various topics, ranging from financial management to resume writing.
A family calling
Courtney Brownlee, a nursing student attending Belmont Abbey College, will be the first person in her family to obtain a bachelor’s degree this spring.
“I come from a family of nurses but no one with a degree,” Brownlee told QCity Metro in an interview.
The 34-year-old Charlotte native graduated from West Charlotte High School at 17 but said she “wasn’t ready for college just yet.”
Coming from a family of phlebotomists, certified nursing assistants (CNAs) and medical assistants, she said she “wanted to do something in healthcare.” So, she became a CNA.
In 2011, she said she attended ECPI University, a technical school in Charlotte, and became a licensed practical nurse. Brownlee said the degree solidified her nursing career and financially supported her while she continued her education to become a registered nurse.
Looking for additional support for herself and her family, she said she applied to ANSWER Scholarship last year.
Since being accepted into the program, the mother of three said ANSWER Scholarship provided her family with financial relief and allowed her to focus on her studies at Belmont Abbey College without incurring additional debt. She said the program has also helped her with her time management and mental health.
Brownlee said her children have been inspired since she returned to school.
“They are definitely staying on top of their homework, talking about how smart they want to be, and talking about how they want to go to college and have bigger dreams,” Brownlee said. “It definitely makes me happy.”
Applications for the ANSWER Scholarship are open until March 1.
