Monday, March 31, 2003

A New Web Site Seeks to Increase Minority Students' Use of Federal Scholarships By BROCK READ Washington In an effort to increase the number of minority students who take advantage of federally funded scholarship and job opportunities, a government agency has created a Web site consolidating information on such programs. The site, called e-Scholar and designed by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, lists government scholarships, fellowships, grants, and internships geared to high-school, undergraduate, and graduate students. At present, the site features about $400-million in scholarships, according to Barry K. Williams, a special assistant in the personnel office who is head of the e-Scholar project. The site will expand as information on additional programs becomes available, he said on Friday at a news conference at American University here. The e-Scholar site contains details on internships for minority students, opportunities to travel abroad, and specific programs, like the White House Fellows program. The site also offers advice on creating résumés that will appeal to government employers. Mr. Williams developed e-Scholar after conversations with officials at historically black colleges, who argued that an online compendium of federal programs would broaden the pool of applicants. "I was frustrated by the extent to which applications for federal scholarships and fellowships were determined by students' access to the information about them," said Kay Coles James, director of the Office of Personnel Management. "This site is an invaluable resource for students of all backgrounds," said Leonard Spearman, executive director of the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Easy-to-print version E-mail this article

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