STLCC, PepsiCo Foundation Launch New Scholarship

Today, St. Louis Community College and The PepsiCo Foundation announced the launch of the Uplift Scholarship program to support Black and Hispanic students pursuing two-year degrees and professional certificate programs. In addition to financial assistance, the program provides students with dedicated success coaches, access to emergency grants, and financial literacy courses.

New and current students can apply for the scholarship, which also includes support for programs that are not currently covered by federal student aid. Scholarship applications for summer and fall 2022 semesters will be accepted beginning May 2 and eligible students can apply directly at stlcc.academicworks.com.

“This is a wonderful scholarship opportunity for students at St. Louis Community College. It’s also a great example of opening more pathways to good paying, in-demand careers in the region. It’s important that the College continue to work to reduce racial and wealth gap barriers in our communities,” said Jeff L. Pittman, Ph.D., chancellor, St. Louis Community College. 

“These community partnerships—such as the one with PepsiCo—are critical for our students, our future workforce and for our region,” notes Tiffany Davis, director of workforce and talent development, STLCC. “PepsiCo’s commitment will allow us to connect students to opportunity and employers to trained talent.”

The program is designed with a holistic approach to promote access to education advancement by addressing the obstacles – retention, completion, and workforce readiness – that disproportionately impact Black and Hispanic students’ educational and professional journeys. The Uplift program at St. Louis Community College aims to guide students to jobs in high-growth industries including information technology, advanced manufacturing and transportation.

“Higher education is the single most important tool we have for addressing economic and opportunity inequality. But just entering college is not enough,” said C.D. Glin, global head of philanthropy, PepsiCo, and vice president, The PepsiCo Foundation. “Through the Uplift scholarship, The PepsiCo Foundation and St. Louis Community College are working to ensure Black and Hispanic students not only have a chance to get into college but have access to critical resources to secure their diplomas and embark on meaningful careers.”

The Uplift Scholarship program is part of The PepsiCo Foundation’s $40 million commitment to address historical barriers that make it challenging for minority students to enroll, persist, and graduate from college – barriers that have widened during the pandemic. The Foundation’s Uplift Scholarship is currently offered at 20 community colleges across the country with the goal of providing 4,000 scholarships over five years.

The PepsiCo Foundation's Community College Program is a cornerstone effort of PepsiCo's more than $570 million Racial Equality Journey, a comprehensive initiative to support Black and Hispanic communities, people, and businesses.