We are so excited to share with you today the 2019 Pride Foundation Scholars!
This year, we are awarding $540,000 to 135 LGBTQ+ and allied student leaders—leaders whose stories, ambition, and resilience unequivocally show that our community is truly changing the world.
Pride Foundation scholarships not only provide financial support to students to realize their academic dreams, but also critical community connection and encouragement to remarkable students who are driving the LGBTQ+ movement forward and building a better, safer, and more equitable world.
A Snapshot of 2019 Pride Foundation Scholars, By the Numbers
These scholars are pursuing their educational dreams in every corner of our region.
47% live in rural areas.
These scholars have often overcome significant obstacles and barriers.
50% have experienced homelessness.
These scholars exemplify the beauty and power of gender diversity in the Northwest.
53% identify as trans or gender diverse.
These scholars represent the incredible diversity of the LGBTQ+ community.
67% identify as people of color.
These scholars are claiming their right to self-determination and equal access to opportunity.
33% are living with a disability.
Pride Foundation’s scholarships will support the invaluable work of students like 2019 Scholar B. Williams.
“I want to change the discourses that prevent queer communities of color from accessing legal remedies to intergenerational hardship,” explains B. “I want the freedom to study law with intensity and purpose and to tie that work to the lived experiences of my people.”
Our scholarships show students that there is a community standing behind them—that we are here, celebrating them as their whole selves and encouraging them to continue to change the world for the better.
“I want to pursue an education in public policy and public health so that America’s future laws… are informed by the needs of Queer Trans People of Color (QTPOC),” says returning scholar Ryan Wagstaff. “Passing a law is just as important as getting people to mobilize for a specific cause, and knowing this I have a new sense of appreciation for non-profits that offer services for and by the LGBTQ+ community.”
We hope you’ll join us to honor the 2019 Pride Foundation Scholars, and to thank the generous volunteers and supporters who contribute so much to this program at one of our upcoming Scholarship Celebrations throughout the region.