For many, figuring out how to pay for college is a daunting task. However, there are 68 students who are already set, and they haven’t even gotten to middle school. All third graders at an Arizona elementary school have been given full-ride college scholarships.
Funds for this amazing gift were raised by the Rosztoczy Foundation, an Avondale, Arizona nonprofit that runs a College Promise program that was created to help students continue their studies, by advancing to college. In order to receive the scholarship funds, the students must graduate from Bernard Black Elementary School, as well as a school in the Phoenix Union High school District. According to Tim Rosztoczy, a trustee of the Rosztoczy Foundation, students can choose whether to attend college in or outside of the state of Arizona.
“The kids and their parents have time to re-think their future with respect to education and then get academically prepared,” he told USA Today. “We also wanted them to be old enough to understand what this means. Third grade felt right last time, so we just did it again.”
Rosztoczy continued, “Tuition, room and board at a state school can cost students and their families $25,000 to $30,000 per year.
Unfortunately, that number for students and parents continues to rise the yearly.
Students and their parents from Bernard Black Elementary School were invited to the school and given the amazing news.
“They can earn a college scholarship for a large number of students if they can get them to perform academically,” Rosztoczy said to the popular news outlet. “This also greatly enhances the chances that the current kids will be academically prepared.”
Rosztoczy said in a recent video that he was inspired by his own father, Hungarian immigrant Ferenc Rosztoczy, who moved to New Jersey with a Hungarian degree in chemistry. He was looking for a job and was offered $55 a week. From there, Rosztoczy’s altruism was born.
Congratulations to the class of the class of 2031. The future is definitely yours!
