April 7 Luncheon to Bring Donors and Scholars Together

Five years and $500,000 after launching a program for students in Chicago’s low-income neighborhoods, DePaul University is preparing to graduate its first Egan Hope Scholar, and 16 others are soon to follow.

The program, named for renowned Chicago priest Msgr. John J. Egan, reaches out to high school seniors in Chicago who lack the resources to pursue higher education and who are not often recruited by universities. It currently provides 10 Latino and seven African-American students with $10,000 annually for school expenses, effectively replacing oppression with opportunity.

Egan Hope Scholars will meet the scholarship fund’s benefactors at an April 7 luncheon, an inspirational event where students will thank donors and donors will see first-hand the impact their generosity has had on students’ lives.

"We have a responsibility to build a world with an environment that allows and encourages all people to live, not merely exist," Egan said. "The Hope Scholars will have a tremendous willingness to give something back when they're in the work world. They won't be in it just for the buck."

A student's commitment to community service is central to receiving an Egan Hope Scholarship. Eligible students must be active volunteers during their high school years and continue their public service as DePaul students. Dedication to the service of others is at the heart of the Egan Hope Scholars’ and DePaul’s mission.

The program was created in 1993 to mark Egan’s 50th anniversary as a priest. For the past 10 years, Egan has headed DePaul’s Office of Community Affairs.

The scholarship covers the balance of full tuition, on-campus housing, books and related expenses up to $10,000 each year after students exhaust other financial aid sources. Qualified students must graduate from high school with a minimum 2.25 grade point average (GPA) and maintain a minimum 2.5 GPA while at DePaul. A minimum ACT score of 18 or an SAT score of 860 is required.

Marlee Benton, a senior communication major and the first Egan Hope Scholar, said the program made her dream of attending college a reality. "I always knew I was going to college, but I didn't know where I was going to get the money," said Benton, who grew up in the Chicago Housing Authority’s Lathrop Homes. "The Egan Hope Scholarship really cinched it."

Benton, who will graduate in June, would like to return the contribution to her neighborhood some day. She visits periodically with Egan and enjoys his stories about Martin Luther King's demonstrations in the South during the height of the civil rights movement. Egan was one of the first Catholic priests to march in Selma, Ala.

Jacoby Dickens, chairman of Seaway National Bank of Chicago and a DePaul trustee, is among many of Egan’s longtime friends and admirers who have donated to the scholarship. "Brilliant minds would be wasted without this program," said Dickens. "It is really making a difference."

This year alone, the fund distributed about $170,000 to 17 students currently enrolled at DePaul and has invested more than $500,000 in higher education for low-income minority students since its inception.

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Note to Editors: Reporters interested in covering the April 7^th luncheon should call Denise Mattson in DePaul Media Relations at 312/362-6225 for reservations. The reception begins at 11:30 a.m., followed by a noon lunch and program at the DePaul Club in DePaul Center, 1 E. Jackson Blvd., 11^th Floor.