Scholarships
The Elks National Foundation will award 500 four-year scholarships to the highest-rated applicants in the 2023 competition.
- Any high school senior who is a citizen of the United States is eligible to apply.
- Applicants need not be related to a member of the Elks.
- College students are not eligible to apply.
- Applicants must be citizens of the United States on the date their applications are signed; permanent legal resident status does not qualify.
- Male and female students compete separately.
The 2024 Most Valuable Student scholarship contest is open to any high school senior who is a US Citizen. Applicants will be judged on scholarship, leadership, and financial need. Applications for the 2024 contest will be available online starting August 1, 2023. The 2023 MVS application deadline is November 13, 2023 at 11:59 pm.
The 20 top finalists will participate in an all expenses paid Leadership Weekend in Chicago during which they’ll interview with the national judges. These 20 finalists will be vying for two first-place awards of $50,000; two second-place awards of $40,000; and two third-place awards of $30,000. The remaining 14 finalists will receive awards of $20,000. The 480 runners-up will receive fifth-place scholarships of $4,000.
Click here for a list of Most Valuable Student scholarship application frequently asked questions.
The Chicago office of the Elks National Foundation announced the 2021 500 national winners in late April 2023. (Many local Lodges, districts and state Elks associations award their own scholarships through this program. These scholarships are not to be confused with the 500 Elks National Foundation Most Valuable Student Scholarships.)
Ranging from $1,000 per year to $12,500 per year, Most Valuable Student scholarships are for students pursuing a four-year degree, on a full-time basis (minimum of 12 semester hours), in a U.S. college or university. All scholarships are in the form of certificates of award conditional upon the full-time enrollment of the winner in an accredited U.S. college or university.
The Elks National Foundation is proud to present its 2023 class of Most Valuable Student Scholarship Recipients. Click here to see the full list of winners.
500 Four-Year Awards for the 2021-2022, 2022-23, 2023-2024, 2024-2025 Academic Years |
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| Four-Year Total Award | No. of Awards | Total | |
| First Place | $50,000 | 2 | $100,000 |
| Second Place | $40,000 | 2 | $80,000 |
| Third Place | $30,000 | 2 | $60,000 |
| Fourth Place | $20,000 | 14 | $280,000 |
| Runners Up | $4,000 | 480 | $1,920,000 |
| Total: | $2,440,000 | ||
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Legacy Awards are $4,000 scholarships for children and grandchildren of Elks members. The Foundation will offer a total of 300 awards in the 2021 contest, an increase of 50 awards.
The 2024 contest will open on August 1, 2023.
The deadline for applications for the 2023 contest will be February 1, 2024 at 11:59 a.m. Central Time.
Following are answers to common questions about the Elks National Foundation's ENF Legacy Awards scholarship contest.
- Who is eligible?
- How do I apply?
- Who will I compete against and how are the quotas determined?
- Who Selects the Legacy Award Winners?
- How will the applicants be judged?
- How will the awards be administered?
- Where can I get more info?
In 2014, the Elks National Foundation conducted a third-party evaluation of the Legacy Awards program. Click here to read highlights.
Who is Eligible?
- For the 2024 contest, any child or grandchild (or step-child, step-grandchild, or legal ward) of a living Elk who joined the order on or before April 1, 2022, or a charter member of a Lodge that was instituted on or after April 1, 2023, is eligible to apply. The Elk must also be a paid-up member through March 31, 2024. Great-grandchildren are not eligible.
- The applicant must be a high school senior.
- The applicant must apply online only. The 2024 Legacy Awards application deadline is 11:59 a.m. Central Time on Friday, February 6, 2024.
- If the applicant's parent and grandparent are both Elk members, the applicant must apply through the parent's Elks Lodge.
- We have waived the standardized test requirement for the 2024 Legacy contest. You do not need to submit ACT and/or SAT scores.
- Students may apply for more than one ENF scholarship; however, they may win only one. In cases where the student qualifies for more than one, we will award the scholarship with the greater value. Students can accept local and state scholarships, which are separate from the awards at the national level.
- Legacy Awards may only be applied to accredited US American schools, colleges or universities. (Note: Applicants from Guam, Panama, Puerto Rico and the Philippines may apply Legacy Awards toward schools, colleges or universities in their respective homes.)
- If you are selected as a 2024 Legacy Awards recipient, you will be required to perform service once a year with an Elks Lodge during the four years you are receiving the scholarship. Click here for more information about serving with the Elks.
How Do I Apply, and What Are the Deadlines?
Eligible students should apply in the following manner:
- The student must complete and submit the ONLINE application. The 2024 Legacy Awards application deadline is due online by 11:59 a.m. (noon) Central Time on January 31, 2024.
- The Elk sponsor’s membership will be verified through the BPOE Grand Lodge headquarters.
- When a student registers to complete the online application, both the applicant and Lodge Secretary will be notified by email.
- If you have questions about your online Legacy Awards application, contact the ENF Scholarship Office via email at scholarship@elks.org. Visit our Legacy Awards FAQ page.
- Upon receipt of the application, the applicant will receive a notification that the application was received. Winners will be announced in late April 2024.
Note: Because the contest begins in one Lodge year and the winners are announced in the next, a Legacy Award could go to the child or grandchild of a lapsed member. An applicant's Elk parent or grandparent must be a paid-up member in good standing at the time of application, but if the Elk chooses not to renew membership, that decision will not affect the outcome of the Legacy Awards contest.
Who Will I Compete Against and how are the quotas determined?
Legacy Awards are $4,000 scholarships ($1,000 year for four years). The Foundation will offer a total of 300 awards starting with the 2024 Contest.
Children and grandchildren will compete separately against other children and grandchildren in their state. Each state is eligible to receive a number of awards based on its past support of the Elks National Foundation. Each state’s quota is divided evenly among children and grandchildren. In states where the quota is an uneven number, the extra award is allocated to children of Elks, rather than grandchildren.
Who Selects the Legacy Award Winners?
The Selection Committee is appointed by the ENF Board of Trustees, and consists of professionals who are not connected with either the Elks National Foundation or the BPO Elks of the USA. The Selection Committee is responsible for the confidential review of each applicant's file. They determine the Legacy Award winners. All decisions are final.
How Will Applications Be Judged?
The ENF Legacy Awards contest provides educational assistance to children and grandchildren of Elk members who are high school seniors, going on to college, and exhibit the core values of the Elks National Foundation:
- Knowledge
- Charity
- Community
- Integrity
The Selection Committee judges applications based on the above values. There will be no further investigation of the prospective students or their parents with respect to financial need or other personal matters.
How Will the Awards Be Administered?
- Award winners will be announced in late April.
- The award becomes final when the student accepts it and actually enrolls in an accredited U.S. American school, college or university. The award money will be apportioned equally by period (semester, trimester, quarter, etc.).
- Legacy Awards are evidenced by a Certificate of Award issued by the Chicago office of the Elks National Foundation.
- All checks are paid directly to the school; under no circumstance can we make payment directly to the student.
- The scholarship monies may be used for anything that the school considers cost of attendance. This often includes tuition and fees, books and supplies, and room and board.
- In order to receive payment, a student must have the school send a completed Verification of Enrollment form to our Chicago office. We will then issue our check, payable to the school, and mail it directly to the school to establish a credit in the name of the student. We will notify the student when we mail the check.
- If a student leaves school for any reason, the undisbursed balance of the scholarship must be returned directly to the Foundation's Chicago office. It may not be transferred to another school, and it may not be paid to the student personally.
- In all of our scholarship programs, it is the responsibility of the student to follow up on all matters relating to his or her scholarship. In all correspondence relating to a student who has won or is applying for a Legacy Award, we must have the full name and ENF ID number of the student.
Where Can I Get More Information about the ENF Legacy Awards Program or the Elks National Foundation?
scholarship@elks.org
773/755-4732
Elks National Foundation
2750 N. Lakeview Ave.
Chicago, IL 60614-2256
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The Emergency Educational Grant program provides financial assistance to children of deceased or totally disabled Elks, who wish to obtain or further their college education.
Last year, the Elks National Foundation conducted a third-party evaluation of the Emergency Educational Grant program. Click here for highlights.
Grant amounts are based on the information submitted in the application and can range up to $4,000. The grant is for one year only; however, the student may submit up to three annual renewal applications for succeeding years as long as he or she meets all other eligibility requirements. The applicant cannot accept more than one ENF scholarship/grant in any one academic year.
New and renewal applications should be filed between May 1 and October 31. Incomplete or late applications will not be considered. The grant is for educational assistance only and not intended to cover the entire cost of a college education. Assistance cannot be extended beyond four years.
Before applying, please be sure that the applicant meets the following eligibility guidelines.
- The Elk parent or stepparent must have been a member in good standing for at least one year at the time of his or her death.
- The Elk parent or stepparent must have been a member in good standing for at least one year before he or she became totally disabled and must continue to be an Elk in good standing when application for assistance is made.
- All circumstances surrounding the death or disability of the Elk parent or stepparent are subject to the review of the Elks National Foundation. The outcome of the review may effect grant approval.
- The applicant must demonstrate financial need to qualify for a grant under this program.
- The applicant must be unmarried, under the age of 23 as of Dec. 31 in the year of application, and attending an accredited U.S. institution of higher learning as a full-time (12 semester hours) student.
or
All applications—new and renewal—must be submitted to the Elks National Foundation Scholarship Office in Chicago. Upon receipt of the application, our office will contact the parent’s or step-parent’s Elks Lodge to verify membership information.
If you or someone you know qualifies for the Emergency Educational Grant, please contact our office to request a copy of the application. Please call 773/755-4732 or email scholarship@elks.org to request an application.
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Louisiana awards twelve scholarships – seven each of like amounts for male and female high school graduating seniors. These are one-time awards ranging from $2,500 to $1,100 contingent upon full-time enrollment of the winner in an accredited U.S. college or university. The applications process is the same as the ENF MVS program. Applicants will be judged on scholarship, leadership, and financial need.
When applying for an MVS scholarship, all applications must go through a local Elks Lodge before reaching the Elks National Foundation office. Applications are to be submitted to the Elks Lodge closest to the applicant's home by November 5, 2023.
Contact your high school counselor for more information or your local Louisiana Elks Lodge.
Local lodges may have application processes that differ from the ENF MVS and Louisiana MVS programs, and deadlines may vary for each of the local lodge programs. Please check with one of the following Louisiana Elks Lodge Scholarship Chairpersons for information on national, state or local lodge scholarship programs.
- New Orleans Lodge 30:
Brian Baye, PER – Email: bbaye988@yahoo.com - Shreveport Lodge 122:
Ruby Blackwell – Email: jblack73160@gmail.com - Opelousas Lodge 1048:
Mary Grace Trombley – Email: mglt@live.com - Donaldsonville Lodge 1153:
Kathryn Hebert, PER – Email: kkapont@gmail.com - Houma Lodge 1193:
Kelly Rodrigue – E-mail: Kelly.rodrigue@nicholls.edu - Plaquemine Lodge 1398:
John Sasser, PER – Email: johnsasser79@gmail.com - Slidell Lodge 2321:
Deidre Christian, ER – Email: deeg404@yahoo.com - New Orleans Westbank Lodge 2496:
Puddy Gondrella, PER – Email: puddygondrella@yahoo.com
| LEA State ENF – MVS Scholarship Chairperson: | Charlesray Neight, PSP E-mail: crwddd42@aol.com |